


Soul Mechanics

by BuggyNess



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: F/M, Winry goes to find her idiot, resembool trio adventures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-26
Updated: 2016-02-01
Packaged: 2018-03-25 21:08:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 19
Words: 73,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3825121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BuggyNess/pseuds/BuggyNess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Her whole young life she waited for him. She waited for him to restore his and his brother's bodies. He did that. She waited for him to save the country. He did that too. She was currently waiting for the wanderlust to leave his body and she didn't know if she could wait much longer. One day, she decided to stop. That was the day she received a letter from Julia Crichton.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Table City Bound

**Author's Note:**

> Cross posting this to Ao3 and fixing some grammar and funky stuff I didn't like from the original.

You'd think that spending summers in Rush Valley prepares a person for uncomfortable heat. It doesn't. What was she thinking when she agreed to this? It was so god-damned hot. Rush Valley seemed as cool as Briggs in December compared to Table City in August. She wondered if the people still living in the valley below the city escaped the heat. She wondered just what kind of living conditions existed now, three years after she had last set foot in this part of the West, still the Amestrian frontier. She also wondered just how far away Ed was from here.

The mechanic last saw him at Resembool station where he half-assed proposed to her and she whole-heartedly accepted, offering her entire life. That was a year ago. Ed only made two promises to her she could ever remember: one, that she'd cry tears of joy the next she saw him and Al restored; and two, he'd write her until he returned. He kept both promises. However, his letters came few and far between. He traveled extensively and seldom had a return address she could send her letters. Sometimes, they returned to her. He even called regularly - at first. It had been a good six months since she last heard his voice and two months since she got his last letter. And, despite his awkward vow to her at Resembool station, his letters never contained more than he was doing fine, where he had been, what he had seen AND her automail was in perfect shape.

It seriously irked her. Her heart belonged to him and she felt like she was reading letters from a good friend, not her fiancée. The young woman started getting angry when the phone calls stopped. Her whole life she waited for him. She waited for him to restore his and his brother's bodies. He did that. She waited for him to save the country. He did that too. She was currently waiting for the wanderlust to leave his body and she didn't know if she could wait much longer. One day, she decided to stop. That was the day she received a letter from Julia Crichton.

That letter was the reason she sat in the humid, hot and stuffy train car headed toward Table City. She gazed outside at the parched gorges and valleys as the hot air from the open window blew her now shorn blond locks about her face. The mechanic smiled, now glad she cut off her hair. It was so much easier to fix AND it was out of her way when she worked on automail. The best part, though, was she KNEW it would piss Ed off. She smiled at that thought. In addition to short hair, Winry Rockbell also sported a couple more piercing in each ear. She felt that she was becoming addicted to the pain of the needle passing through her lobes. It made her feel alive. And to top it all off, one night, Paninya introduced her to an artist-a tattoo artist. She now sported a very cute and ornate  _wrench_  on her left hip.

"Hey, cutie." A lone soldier plopped into the empty seat next to her. He was probably her age but was sweating profusely in his Amestrian blue uniform. "Is this seat taken?"

"No, not at all." She rolled her eyes.  _Another horny male._  Before he could open his mouth to say a come on or flirt, Winry scooted past him and left him sitting with his mouth open. He turned to watch her sashaying down the isle with that wrench tattoo peaking out of her low-rise cutoff jeans shorts. She took off her white cotton shirt and tied it around her small waist, revealing her sky blue camisole tank top. Even with her boyish hairstyle, she was totally a  _woman_  and whether  _she_  realized it or not, all the men in that particular train car sure did.

**"Allen" Harris from **FMA Manga by Hiromu Arakawa**  
**

She sauntered toward the front of the train car and toward a man with an ice box selling concessions. She picked out a cold bottle of soda then looked back down the car. She realized there was no other empty seat but beside the young soldier who looked almost sick because of the heat. She groaned and against her better judgment, she picked up a second soda, some straws, then paid the vendor. When the solder looked up, there she was holding the cola for him which he took gladly. She sat down across from him.

"You should request  _summer_  fatigues or you'll die of heat stroke out here." She said after a sip. He smirked and unbuttoned the uniform coat. She noticed he was really young.

"Yeah, it doesn't get this hot back in Central.." He sipped on the soda. "Thanks for the drink. I thought you didn't like me."

"I don't." She smiled. "Just didn't want to see you keel over if I could help it." A hot breeze blew in from the open window and they both relished it. "I'm Winry Rockbell, by the way." She held out her hand and he took it and shook.

"Allen Harris." He had a look of recognition on his face. "Hey! I know you! You're the Fullmetal Alchemist's mechanic. Wow! The guy's back home are not going to believe it!"

"Gosh, I knew Ed was famous, but I didn't think anyone knew about me."

"Well, yeah! Anyone with automail knows your name." He put his right foot on the seat next to her and pulled up his pants leg revealing a shiny metal ankle and most likely an automail foot. He smiled. "Lost it in a farming accident when I was a kid. My parents took me to Rush Valley and I got this dandy thing installed."

Her eyes widened. "Can I see?" She didn't wait for an answer and before the young man could protest, she had his shoe off and was examining the metal foot. "Very nice craftsmanship! I know this design. Hey, did Mr. Dominic make this for you?" She let him have his appendage back and he answered her while putting his sock and shoe back on.

"Yes, that's who. Grumpy ol' bastard, but I can walk and run now." He resumed drinking his soda.

"So, why are you on this train to the West?"

"Orders, ma'am. My regiment is stationed on the Amestrian side of Table City, you know, to keep the Milosians honest. What about you?"

"I got a letter from an old friend that needed my help." Her mind shifted to the day she received Julia's letter. She was pissed off at Ed and stomping around the house when Granny brought her the envelope. She knew right away it was something different because of the odd postmark.

_Dear Winry,_

_I hope this letter finds you well. You helped the people of the Valley so much years ago, I hope that you can find it in yourself to help them once more._

_Edward said that you were the best. He visited here several weeks ago and he gave me your address. I hate to write of bad news, but_ _Old Man Gon, Mr. Gonzolez has passed away. His apprentice, Ivan, is a good man, but as he's not finished his apprenticeship, he still has a lot to learn about automail. When he found out_ _that we were acquainted, he asked that I implore to you to come visit us here and help finish his training. Both Creta and Amestris denies our petitions for entry Visas, so we cannot seek the_ _assistance of another mechanic._

 _You will be handsomely compensated and I hope this will_ _be a good opportunity for you to showcase your skills and broaden your own business. And, with all honesty, my leg is a mess and I need you to fix the damn thing! Please say you'll come._

_Hoping you'll say yes,_

_-Julia Crichton_

"Julia's the Milosian Senator." He finished up his soda and sat the empty bottle on the floor. "She's probably the one thing keeping both Creta and Amestris from attacking Table City. I do admire her. And. She's hot! I don't understand, you've probably got hundreds of good paying clients back home, why'd you come out to this god-forsaken place?"

"Call it a goodwill mission." She smiled, thinking of her parents. "I guess it's just in the Rockbell DNA to want to help people. Besides, I'll have my own apprentice and teach him how to maintain and build automail the right way. That can only help the people of Milos."

"Yeah, I agree, they've had it bad, but Amestris still claims Table City, or wants it back. It's not a safe place to be right now." He looked at her, this time very serious. "There's a lot of crazy factions trying to take that place from the Milosians. Not including Amestris. They still seem to think that place has something of value hidden inside."

"I understand." Winry really understood more than Allen Harris.  _The philosopher's stone or sanguine star, or many of them are fabled to still be within the city. "_ But whatever insane thing they think is there, I know Julia and her people just want their own freedom and place of their own a place separate from both Creta and Amestris. I can't blame them for that." She finished her soda as an announcement came over the intercom.

"Next stop, Border City!"

"That's my stop." Allen smiled.

"I never heard of that city before."

"Started out as a military camp after the Milosian uprising three years ago, then just grew. It's mostly military, but still the last stop before crossing the border into Table City. You have your travel papers? They are really strict about letting people go to and fro there."

"Yeah, I'm covered, I've got some friends high up." She smiled thinking of General Mustang and how easy it was to get her travel visas fast, despite his disapproval that it was dangerous. She winced at how coyly he smirked at her and she knew he though she was doing this to track down Edward. NO! She totally WASN'T doing this to track down that stupid alchemy freak….no….not at all.

The train started to slow and then came to a stop, the whistle blowing and steam billowing backward. The young solder stood up and saluted Winry. He winked.

"Take care of yourself, ma'am. If you need anything, send word to me, we are just over the bridge." He walked toward the isle. "And thank you for the soda, you saved my life!"

"You're welcome, Allen Harris." She smiled a smile that made the young man blush. "And requisition yourself some  _summer_  uniforms!"

"Yes, Miss Rockbell!" He left her sitting there and wondering just what in the world she had gotten herself into this time.

* * *

 

Table City was as she had left it about three years earlier, albeit cleaner and more friendly. The people of Milos had reconstructed all the destroyed buildings and the city center was bustling with commerce. She stepped down, out of the train and noticed how everyone smiled at her, a stranger. She found her luggage and the huge crates of metal, tools and materials she'd need to teach Ivan and work on the patients of Milos. She heard her name being called across the crowded platform.

"Winry! Winry Rockbell!" A flash of strawberry blond hair ran through the crowd and before she knew it, the stunningly beautiful Julia Crichton with her turquoise eyes stood before her and then, embraced her in a hug.

"Julia!" Winry was so happy to see a familiar face after this terribly long and hot trip west.

"I'll tell you again, I am so happy you accepted my request! Ivan is around here somewhere and he is ecstatic to work with the famous Winry Rockbell!" Her smile was genuine and infectious. "Oh, your hair! It's short and lovely! I almost didn't recognize you." She picked up one of Winry's suitcases, not paying any attention to the blonde's protest. "There he is. Ivan! Over here!" She waved to a tall, lanky dark-haired young man. Winry recognized him from Mr. Gon's shop in the valley.

"Bless your golden heart!" He smiled and grabbed Winry in a huge bear hug. "You are an angel for coming all the way out here!"

"I told someone earlier today, it must be in my DNA to do things like this." She smiled.

"Edward Elric told us you probably couldn't come with all your obligations in Rush Valley and Resembool. But I told Miss Julia the worst you could say to us was no." Ivan picked up the rest of her suitcases. "I'll have my helpers come and get the crates, let's get you settled!"

"Was Ed here long?" Winry hoped she didn't sound too desperate, so she acted as nonchalant as she could as they walked to a parked car at the end of the terminal.

"He stayed about two weeks to learn a little of my parent's alchemy." Julia smiled. "He spoke of you a lot." She poked Winry with her elbow. "I don't know why he just won't go home."

"Me either." She shut her mouth to reveal too much. "Yeah, he and his brother are travelers, that's for sure."

"Do you think you could look at my leg when we get back? I know you have to be tired, so I'd understand if you want to rest…"

"Nonsense, Julia!" She laced her arm in the Senator's as they strolled together. "I can't stand for anyone to hurt or limp on their automail. Not when I can do something about it!"

"Fantastic! I'm so glad I didn't listen to Ed and wrote to you. You are a blessing to my people!"

Winry smiled as she and Julia got in to the back of the car and Ivan loaded her luggage, gave a paper to two men, probably his helpers, and he got into the driver's seat.

"You're not going to believe the accommodations, Miss Rockbell, they are top notch in the city!" He started the car.

"Please, Ivan, just call me Winry." She stared at the moving scenery. Every building was being restored or improved, builders and construction workers were everywhere. "I bet this building boom is good for the economy."

"It sure is. Since I negotiated work visas for Creta and Amestris, we've had lots of workers coming and staying here to build. And buy things!" She looked proud of herself. "And, we've initiated trade with both countries of the minerals we've found in the Valley. It's slow, but I'm hoping both nations will start to trust us and eventually open up the borders to my people."

"Not that any of us want to leave!" Ivan chimed in. "But would be nice to be able to if we wanted."

They drove for a few minutes and came around a bend to a very narrow street. The car came to a gate guarded by many soldiers. Ivan leaned out his open window and one guard nodded and the gate opened. Julia waved at the men, they saluted her back and the car entered the narrow drive beyond the gate. It came upon a circular driveway and stopped in front of the building's entrance. Ivan ran out to open Julia's door, then before she could open it herself, he opened Winry's. She finally got a look at her new home and was astounded. It was a mansion!

"I told you our new digs were impressive!" Ivan boasted.

"Yes, yes it is!" Winry raised her head to look up at the many-storied structure. It's façade was made of pale stone with gothic curves and twists.

"I'm so glad you are here!" Julia turned to Winry. "Come! Let me show you to your room and then to the shop!"

"Great!" Winry was tired from traveling, but seeing the excitement and joy in Julia and Ivan's faces at her arrival, she could not let them down by resting, no, not now.

* * *

 

"It's busted, beyond repair, I know it!" Julia groaned as she sat in the special chair, made just for Winry, with her legs raised up so the mechanic could work. "I knew when the ankle quit moving that it was gone."

"Nonsense!" Winry shushed her. She had donned a green handkerchief to tie back her bangs and soak any sweat. She also donned a tight blue sports top and her favorite coveralls, tied at her waste to work. "I mean, yeah, it all has to go, but, I've come prepared!" She reached for one of her large cases and opened it to reveal a plain loaner leg. "This is adjustable, you'll have to wear it for about three days, but when I'm done, you'll have one hell of a leg that will last you a long time….or until you SMASH it!" She couldn't help herself, she snarled. "Sorry. Force of habit, I get quite attached to my automail." she smiled.

"I bet you used to yell at Edward all the time." Julia teased. "He couldn't have been careful with your limbs." She narrowed her eyes. "I bet you miss him terribly."

Before she could react, she spoke. "Yes. Terribly." Winry then realized herself. "Yeah, well, I miss working on my automail he wears. Jerk. I bet he's walking around with a backward foot and he's too scared to come back for maintenance!" Julia snickered at her.

"It was fine when he was here. I think he's taking care of it out of respect for you." She looked away. "Have her heard from Alphonse lately?"

"Al? Well, he's the GOOD brother, you know. HE calls me and Granny about every week and writes once a month. He even sent me some beautiful silk from Xing. Granny said she'd make it into a dress or something." Then she remembered that Ed had told her that the last time they were at Table City, when Al was still in his armor, that the younger Elric was quite smitten with the Senator, who was just Julia back then. "You should write him, I bet he'd love to hear from you."

"Maybe." She looked off wistfully. "Edward told me that Al is being tutored in alchahestry by a Xingese princess and that he may be smitten with her."

"Really?" Alphonse hadn't mentioned anything in his calls her letters, or had he? He DID mention May's name a lot, now that she thought about it. "He's not told me anything about them being a couple." That was the truth, but the more Winry though on the subject, the more she felt stupid for not noticing it before. Al was in love with May Chang! Still, she didn't want to hurt Julia so she changed the topic.

"Here, let me get this old broken thing off and the loaner on." She turned her wrench and loosed the mechanism which released Julia's leg from her port. Then she picked up the loaner and inserted it in the port, the loaner leg did not attach to the nerves so Julia felt no pain. "I'll have you one top rate leg in about three days!" She beamed with excitement. Building new automail was her passion.

"Thank you so much!" Julia tried out the leg. It was awkward but would do until her final limb was ready. "Please, you've had a long journey, I want you to go upstairs to you room and get cleaned up, comfortable and rest a little. You can have dinner with us at seven. There's even a telephone in the corridor, call home and let them know you arrived safely. There's stationary and postage in the desk in your room. Write a letter if you'd like. After you are rested and fed, if you don't want to go to bed, the shop and my leg will be here for you." Julia embraced Winry in a big hug and looked at her. They very well could be sisters, at lest Winry wondered if it felt like this to have a sister as warm as Julia was to her.

"I think I would LOVE a bath, it was so hot and sticky on the train. I think I'll take you up on that offer." She would definitely call Granny and ask her to let Alphonse know where she was and that she was ok when he called. She knew that the Elric brothers kept in touch too, so hopefully, word would get to Edward. Not that she cared. She was not going to write or call Ed, perhaps a little worry about HER would be good for him too.

"Wonderful, let me show you how to get to your room from here."

The two girls left the shop and made their way through the huge mansion _._


	2. Sex Ed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was so much fun to write. I love picking on Edward so much. If he weren't so clueless he would have planted a kiss on Winry at the train station. But as he didn't, I have a lot of fodder for fanfiction.

The young man sat with his heavy-soled boots comfortably plopped on the tabletop. As he reclined in his heavy chair, he balanced a book on his lap and leafed through it's pages  _very_  slowly. He studied the contents of this book with earnest as if memorizing the tome. The pages were well worn and marked with tabs and dog ears, most likely places in the book he wanted to recall or remember. However, a casual observer seeing the young man reading would not be able to tell anything about this particular book because it was lovingly covered with brown paper, as a schoolboy would cover his textbooks. A diagram, or important passage caught his eye and he sat up and turned the book in different angles to observe. He sat back down and saw the time on the clock hanging over the ornate mantle. Six o'clock. She'd be working and the Old Hag would probably be in the kitchen and close to the telephone.

"Now or never." He said out loud to the empty room. Ed then discarded his reading material on the table, stood and walked to the telephone. As he passed the book, this small movement caused the pages to flip and fall forward leaving the first page visible. It's title read:

XINGESE LOVEMAKING STYLES 

**ILLUSTRATED**

Pinako Rockbell stood in her humble kitchen washing dishes as the dog scarfed down its dinner. She stood on a small stepstool to reach the sudsy water and her arms up to her elbows were immersed. The telephone in the hallway rang, shattering her peaceful evening and causing Den to bark at the disruption of her supper.

"Ack!" She grunted and tore off her rubber gloves and grabbed a dishtowel to dry her hands. She hobbled into the hallway and picked up the receiver. "Rockbell automail, waddaya want?"

"Pinako?"

She hadn't heard this mousy voice in a very long time. Her thin lips spread into a smile. "Edward."

"Yeah, it's me." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously as he spoke.

"I was wondering when you'd call or drag yourself back home. I suppose you'd be wanting to speak to Winry…"

"About that, Granny, " he cut her off, "can I just talk to you a minute, there's something important I need to ask."

"Actually, Ed…." She needed to tell him that her granddaughter was not in Resembool, in fact, she wasn't even in Amestris anymore.

"Please! Just let me get this out before I chicken out!" He growled.

"Alright, hotshot," If he was going to be this way, she could play this game. "What do you need to ask me?"

"I should have asked you this a long time ago, but I really didn't plan on the conversation Winry and I had at the train station before I left for the West…."

"Good lord, here it comes." She whined, knowing where the boy was going.

"Hey!" He swore in his own mind, just wanting to finish. "You're Winry's guardian and I should have asked you….I should have asked you FIRST." The words seemed to cause him a lot of discomfort. "Granny, I want your blessing to marry Winry!" He shouted hoping to get the words out before he couldn't utter them.

 _This is too hilarious_ , she thought and she decided to play with him. "Edward, you and your brother were just about my own grandchildren too.  _If_ Winry will have you, you have my blessing. Oh, and as a surgeon and doctor, I could provide you with some medical diagrams of what to do on your  _wedding_  night if you like…."

"Granny!" His entire face turned beet red.

"She is my granddaughter, after all. I want  _her_  to be happy…."

"Ack!" Edward protested.

"And I want  _lots_  of great grand children."

"Stop! Stop! Stop! I'm NOT having this conversation with you!" He shouted in embarrassment. "Old hag, just let me speak to Winry!"

"She's not here, Edward." Pinako chuckled.

"Ok, I'll call Mr. Garfiel's in Rush Valley."

"Not there either. In fact, she's out of the country"

"What? Just where the HELL IS SHE!" He was beyond flustered with the old woman.

"I can't tell you." She smiled. "Winry made me promise. I'm sorry Edward."

"She MADE you? What…what the hell? Granny, I need to know where she is! I want to propose to her!"

"Edward are you stuck in a time warp?" She pinched the bridge of her nose with her thumb and index finger and shook her head. "It wasn't just yesterday you left Resembool, it's been about a year. Do you even remember when you last spoke to her?"

"Huh? Well, it HAS been a long time since we talked on the phone, but we've written…."

"Ed, she's not gotten a letter from you going on three months now."

"Oh." Fear gnarled itself in the pit of his belly. She had always waited for him. ALWAYS. Could she? No. Could she have? No. Could she have MOVED ON? "Pinako! Some of the places I stayed in the West had no telephones. Hell, sometimes I slept in a barn or the woods. One week I slept in a Cretan jail…."

"I'm not the one you need to tell this to, Edward."

"I know, so quit giving me grief and tell me where the hell she is! Ok?"

"I'm sorry. I cannot tell you."

"Granny! Please! I, I, I," he stammered. I L-L-L-L. I L-L-L-LOVE HER!" There. He said it out loud. To. Her. GRANDMOTHER! He slapped his right hand over his face.

Pinako exhaled loudly. She couldn't keep being cruel to Edward when he was so pathetic. "Ed. You are supposed to be a genius. If one needs to leave the country wouldn't one need papers to do so? Who do we know in the military who could assist with this?"

The wheels and cogs in his mind groaned and creaked and he uttered the name as he thought it. "Mustang!"

"Good luck with the proposal lover boy. I'll get those medical illustrations ready for your honeymoon, I have a feeling you'll need them!" She cackled as he hung up the phone.

"Of course I won't need them!" He said loudly as he slammed the phone down. "At least, not any more." He looked at the book on the table. "Shit." Edward stuck his hand in his pocket and brou(ght out a tiny black velvet box. He rubbed the material and placed it securely back in his trousers. "I didn't want to have to deal with HIM while I was here." He grabbed his brown trench coat, a drab article of clothing that long replaced his signature red flamel crested jacket of his boyhood. Edward Elric exited the posh hotel room and made his way toward Central Command. He hoped he'd catch that bastard at work.

* * *

 

 

> **"Elmira Suthington"  tutoring Selim   (FMA Manga by Hiromu Arakawa)**

"General Mustang!" Elmira Suthington screamed into the intercom for her employer. "This young man IS not leaving!" She stared down the golden-eyed blond man who growled at her impatiently.

"I don't need an APPOINTMENT to see the General Piss-ant Bastard! He can see me! I doubt he's doing anything but reading the paper!"

Roy Mustang dropped the Central Times gossip column and winced at that comment. He pressed the intercom button. "Elmira, dear, tell Mr. Elric I will see him in a moment…I am involved with very important business of the state." He smirked.

"Mr. Elric!" Elmira smoothed her hair back into its pin tight bun. "Please, if you don't CARE, SIT!" Her eyes glowed with school-marmly authority that caught the young man off guard and before he knew it, he was sitting down on a couch in the waiting room.

"Geesh, Ok." Ed sat and twiddled his thumbs. He waited. And waited. And waited. He growled some more at Elmira. And he waited. His anger had about dulled down to a buzzing in his head until the intercom buzzed back.

"Yes, General Mustang." Elmira didn't take her hateful gaze off of Ed.

"You can send Mr. Elric in, now."

"Yes, sir. Mr. Elric!" She stood and opened the office door. "He will see you now." She ushered him inside.

"About damn time." Ed snarled at Elmira as he entered Mustang's office. The receptionist shut the door behind him.

"Where'd you find her? Was she your old school teacher?" Ed smirked, plopped himself down on a chair opposite the General's desk and then commenced to plop his boots up on the edge of said desk.

"Mind your manners, Fullmetal." Mustang sat back and folded his hands. Whatever Edward wanted, it sure was going to be entertaining.  "Elmira has excellent credentials and yes, she happened to be an elementary school teacher. Probably the reason she handled YOU so expertly." Oh, he was going to enjoy this.

"Yeah, well, I bet Riza hired her." He smiled, knowing he was right. "How is Riza Hawkeye, anyhow?"

" _Captain_ Hawkeye is just fine."  Mustang narrowed his eyes as he enunciated   her new rank.  "I'll let her know you approve of her human resource skills." He hated that Edward was correct. "So, what brings you here after all this time?"

"Well, I'd finished my research in the west and was thinking:  _Gee, I wonder if that Bastard Mustang scraped that hellish pencil mustache off his ugly face?_ So, I decided to come back here and see for myself." He took his feet down and leaned in closer. Mustang's face didn't even change. "I'm happy to find that you DID get rid of that disgusting thing."

"I'm sure you didn't travel all those hours in a hot train just to insult me, Fullmetal. What do you want?"

"I'm not Fullmetal anymore." His tone changed, he knew he'd have to now suck up to the General to get the information he desired. "Just Edward Elric, former state alchemist."

"Alright. Edward Elric. What do you want?"

"Winry Rockbell has come to see you. I know this."

"So? Don't you know where your girlfriend is, Edward?" Oh, he hand him by his balls now.

"Girlfriend!" A bead of sweat trickled down his temple. "Well, yeah, I guess she is that." He exhaled. "I know she's left the country. You're gonna tell me where you got her exit visas. I need to find her."

"That's confidential information, Full- Edward." He corrected himself, not quite sure why he did it though. Egging the boy on was so much fun. "Why should I tell you?"

"I have to speak to her, I need to tell her."

"Tell her what?"

"I want to, I wanted to." Mustang was not going to let this be easy. "I want to propose to her!" He sat back in his chair with a huff.

"Really." Mustang's eyes narrowed. "What if I make you a deal?"

"Great."  _Here he goes._ "What do you want?"

"Let's just say that I've HEARD about some of your exploits in Creta. I know that you've uncovered something. I know it's something powerful, Edward."

"God-dammit! Why the fuck didn't you just COME with me? Instead, you SPY on me?"

"Don't sound so hurt, Edward. I knew you wouldn't just let your alchemy go without kicking and screaming, even if you traded it for your brother….how is Alphonse by the way?"

"Fuck you!" He got up and turned toward the door. "I bet you fucking KNOW how Al is!"

"Edward." Mustang stood. "I'll tell you what you want to know if you just SHARE your research with me and specifically, the Department of Alchemy. Whatever you've uncovered needs to be documented and used by the state. You know this is only the right thing to do,."

Ed stopped in his tracks. "I had planned to write a book about it."

"You still can. You can have all the rights to the discovery. I wouldn't take that from you."

"Can I be involved in any research in this as well? And, if it is to be taught, that's up to me too." He turned to face the General. "Your word!"

"Edward Elric, not only have you been written into Amestrian history as the youngest State Alchemist and a hero of the Promised Day, but you'll get credit for this discovery of yours, you have my word."

"Fine. We have a deal." He walked back toward the desk. "Now, where did Winry go? Please."

"That's much better." Mustand smiled. "She was issued a visa to both Creta and to Table City. I believe she was offered a job by Julia Crichton and is currently there as we speak."

"Thank you." He got up and ran toward the door, he's wasted enough time here.

"Edward!"

"Yeah?" He turned as he was opening the door.

"Good to see you again. And when you get back, please see me so we can make this arrangement work."

"Yeah, yeah." And in a flash, Edward was gone.

"He's going to need a lot of help with this." He sat back down on his chair and thought up another scheme. It was joyous to Roy Mustang to have Edward Elric back in his life to torture for a bit. Yes, he had the perfect idea to get the boy help with this proposal and back to Central as fast as possible. He pressed the intercom button. "Elmira!"

"Yes sir!" She replied with static.

"Has Mr. Elric left?"

"Thank god, he has."

"Can you get me a line, I have a very important call to make."

"Sir? I need to know who you want me to call."

"Xing. I need to speak to Emperor Ling." He heard a thud outside and the line went dead. "Elmira?" Mustang ran to the door and opened it to see the poor receptionist fainted at her post. "Is that going to be a problem?"

"No, no, sir." She sat up, fanning herself with her hand. "I've just never spoken to an  _Emperor_ before." She unlocked her desk and retrieved a top secret list of telephone numbers.

"First time for everything, my dear." Mustang laughed as he entered his office once more and hoped Emperor Ling would entertain his call.


	3. Her Ass

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He knew she'd be rattled with him, but he had to turn it in his favor.

"Do you like the design?" She wiped the sweat from her brow as Julia moved the new limb.

"It's, it's," She was looking for words to describe it, but her body still shook from the pain of insertion and connection to her exposed nerves. "It's just lovely!"

The Senator's new leg gleamed in the morning sun. Instead of the functional hollows and ridges Winry normally used in the outer plates, she decided to forgo that functionality and strength for pure esthetics. The shin guard was smooth, shiny and etched with swirls and designs.

"Those are Ivan's designs, I used acid to etch them into the metal. The normal ridging I use in my automail reinforces the strength of the piece." She smiled. "But, I thought as a Senator, you'd need something a little more elegant." She turned around and picked up a long box on the table and brought it over to the girl. "Anyway, all you have to do is replace the fancy guard with this one. "She opened the box to reveal another shin guard made with her normal design. "It's stronger! And they are so easy to take off and replace."

"Winry, Ivan, this is beautiful!" Ivan beamed from his position in the corner. "I love it!" She got up and walked around the room. "When I walk, it's sooooo smooth, like a real leg! I can't believe I was hobbling on that old one for so long."

"We're glad you like it." She went over and grabbed Ivan's hand and patted it. "I don't know why you think you need to apprentice with me. You are doing so well!"

"I love creating automail." He rubbed the back of his neck. "The problem I have is with the surgeries." He made a face.

"We'll get you through it." She encouraged him.

"Winry, on that topic, I think you need to see your storefront." Julia's eyes twinkled.

"Huh? What do you mean, I have a shop here." She waved her arm in emphasis.

"This is your private shop, but you also have a shop in town. Just so you can create automail for the people!" She grabbed both Winry's and Ivan's hands and drug them toward the door. "C'mon you two! Let's go see it!"

It was a short walk from the Senator's residence to the shop. It was nothing pretentious or huge, but Julia and Ivan made sure it was well equipped and functional. Outside hung a simple sign that read "Automail." The trio entered the spacious workshop.

"This is amazing!" Winry's eye's sparkled as she took inventory of the supplies. She ran to investigate the doors to the left and the right, one containing a surgery room and two recovery rooms. "I can do so much with this!" Ivan and Julia smiled. "Can we open immediately?"

"We had planned a grand opening for tomorrow, but if you want to start seeing customers, I don't see why not." The senator was pleased with this arrangement.

"Ivan, how about you, want to open now?"

"Sure thing!"

"Then it's settled." Julia walked over to the front window and turned the "closed" sign around to "open." "I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."

* * *

Somewhere far away from Table City, two men discussed something very dark and very important. They sat at an old, worn table laden with documents and black and white photographs. One man was seated and his subordinate, a taller man stood taking verbal abuse.

"That is NOT acceptable. The Milosians are weak! We cannot just sit idly by and do nothing whilst they prosper on OUR land." He brought his fist down on the table for emphasis making the papers jump.

"Not only are the Milosians thriving but it seems that Amestris doesn't want to break the non-aggression treaty with them. In fact, they seem to be mutually benefiting from the trade between each other. Border City is also growing at an unprecedented rate." His voice was muffled.

"When are you going to act? Your CAREER is on the line here!" His eyes narrowed. "We must gain access to something that will bring Table City to its knees and scare the Amestrians. Something that will bring fear into their hearts!"

"I'm confident that there are more sanguine stars in the city, THAT would give us great strength, you just need to follow my plan!"

"Do you think you can pull it off?"

"If you put it in my hands COMPLETELY, no outside influence. Will you let me handle all the arrangements?"

"You know what will happen if you fail?" He stood up.

"Yes. I do." He met his superior's stare, his turquoise eyes behind a cold mask.

"Colonel Herschel, do I have to remind you what happened after you botched and destroyed the geothermal plant?"

"No, sir."

"Are you certain this girl will cooperate?"

"No, but I can convince her. This will work!" This time, Hershel brought his fist down on the table right on a copy of the Table City newspaper, an article about the grand opening of an automail shop and a photo of a pretty blond mechanic.

"It better. Your career is not the only thing on the line."

Herschel exhaled loudly inside his mask and left the room. He exited the dark building and stood in an even darker alleyway. Taking off his green military coat, he reached his right hand to his left shoulder and jerked and pulled off his automail arm. He casually tossed the limb into a trashcan as he continued to walk down the alley and into the shadows.

* * *

They had a few customers that first day, mostly old timers needing some quick fixes but no one wanting to commit to new limbs right away. Still, Winry found that she was in her element and working with Ivan turned out to be a joy. He indeed picked up a lot of great things under Old Man Gon's expert tutelage. She even wondered just why Table City needed her with Ivan's evident skills in the craft. He had gotten the repairs down to an art, even an assembly line when the business picked up. In fact, after the grand opening the shop was bustling with customers. She loved it. Being busy kept her mind on happy thoughts, not thought of hurtful things, things like Ed.

However,  news of the new automail shop spread quickly via word of mouth and faster via a full page article in the local paper.  By the third day, names filled their appointment book. They scheduled three surgeries, built three custom orders and fixed ten limbs. Winry enjoyed working late into the night so she sent Ivan home to his family early. Nightfall did absolutely nothing to abate the heat and despite several fans circulating the air, it was stifling hot in her shop. She set down the metal foot she worked on and walked over to the small refrigerator behind the counter. She had to squat to look inside, wanting a particular soda that was way in the back. That's when she heard the twinkle of the bell at the door, signaling a customer.

"Damn," She chastised herself for forgetting to put out the "closed" sign, grabbed her drink and raised herself up. Her deep blue eyes came face to face with brilliant turquoise ones. A tall, dark-haired man stood in her shop, a man missing his left arm. Something about him was curiously familiar and she felt she had seen him before. "Can, can I help you?"

"I hope so." He smiled confidently and she noticed not only did he have piercing eyes, but he also wore his wavy hair in a tight ponytail. "I guess you can see, I need an arm."

"Yeah." She set her soda bottle down and walked around the counter. "Do you mind if I take a look? You can sit over here." She ushered him to a padded chair.

"Right to the point, huh?" He sat down and she pulled up a stool on wheels.

"Well, you came in here late, after we are closed, I don't have a lot of time to chit chat. I could send you away until tomorrow."

"Why didn't you?"

"I'm a sucker for sad faces." She quipped.

"Oh, I didn't realized I looked sad. Some would say, I had a scary face."

"Who would think you're scary? Imbeciles?" She pointed at his shirt. "I need you to take this off so I can see what's left."

"I guess the people I work with think I'm scary, and yes, a lot of them are imbeciles." He pulled at the left arm of his open shirt, the arm was pinned neatly to the shoulder. He struggled a bit, but managed to take the shirt off. "I normally don't get undressed without introducing myself." He laughed.

"Well, I supposed you know who I am," She responded, not helping him as she struggled to take off the shirt. She had long grown accustomed to the fierce independence of the disabled. She only assisted if they asked and he was not asking for help.

"Yes, the whole town's talking about you, Miss Rockbell." His eyes twinkled. "Good to finally meet the famous mechanic from Resembool."

"I don't feel famous, in fact, I _feel_ tired from it all." She eyed his shoulder, where his arm should have been was a metal port. "Good lord, _who_ did this to you!" She shouted.

"I'm Ashley, by the way." He ignored her horror. "Ashley Crichton."

"Huh?" It took her a minute to process the name. He was Julia's brother. She never really met him when she was here three years ago, but Ed and Al had filled her in. Ashley hated Milos and he and Julia fought, both losing limbs in the process as Julia used her alchemy to save him. He disappeared from the hospital without a word. "You're kidding me!"

"No, I'm not." His eyes shone with earnest.

"Why the hell haven't you been to see Julia in all these years!" she sat back defiantly. "She must have worried about you!"

"My relationship with my sister is…complicated." He sighed. "I'm not ready to talk to her just yet."

"That's just wrong, you know."

"I can't help how _you_ feel about this, but will you still help me with my arm?"

"I don't know. Will you speak with her if I do?"

"I cannot promise that. I will try."

"Well, that's all I can hope for." She wiped the sweat from her brow. "You're going to need a lot of work here, you know." The port attachment was terrible. Whoever did it used a massively over-sized metal anchor. She poked around inside the hole where the ball joint would fit. Ashley jumped in pain as she touched a nerve. "The connections seem sound, but this wall is just too big! I can make a new one, but before you get an arm, I'll have to reattach it. I'm afraid you're going to need surgery. Are you up for that?"

"If there is no other alternative." He grit his teeth from the pain. She may be a genius mechanic, but her bedside manner left something to be desired.

"Not if you want the arm I'll build for you to fall off every time you raise it." She put her tool down. "Just who butchered your shoulder up this bad?"

"Where I came from, unfortunately, they don't have very many automail mechanics. I heard that you had come to Table City and I had to seek your help."

"You would have been better with a stump than this thing." She hit the metal port with her wrench, causing him to winch. "But you did the right thing, I can fix this mess, but it's not going to be easy for you." She stood up and walked to the counter and pulled out a calendar book. "Let me see, I can cancel the afternoon appointments and we can do this tomorrow, is that ok?"

"I'm in your capable hands, Miss Rockbell, that will be fine."

"Just call me Winry." She put her hands on her hips as he stood up and put his shirt back on. "You'll need to make arrangements to stay here for tomorrow night, we will have to monitor your recovery. Once that's done, we can discuss the arm design, I'll work on the basic structure tonight. If I can convince Ivan, we might get you in earlier tomorrow, what's your phone number?" She got out a pad of paper and a pen.

"I'm staying around the corner at the Table City Hotel, the room's in my name." He walked toward the door.

"Come by tomorrow at one o'clock unless I call for an earlier time." She wrote down his hotel on the paper. "Oh, and I'm going to tell Julia."

"If you must, but I do not want to see her just yet, will you honor that?"

"I will, I can't say what she'll do, however." She narrowed her eyes as he opened the door to leave. "Get some rest, Ashley Crichton…you'll need it."

He smirked and strolled out the door.

* * *

"Winry?" Julia desperately wanted to see her brother, but wasn't sure how to approach him. "Did he really not want to see me?"

"I'm sorry, that's what he said." She busied herself by setting up the surgery room while Julia questioned her. She knew what she told her hurt, but it was what he had said.

"Was he, OK?"

"He seemed fine physically." _More than fine,_ she thought, _in fact, he WAS quite handsome._

"Winry, I have to tell you something." Her tone turned serious and sad.

"What?"

"Don't trust him. He hates Milos and by association, he probably hates me…and even you." She closed her eyes. "I have to hope and I have to believe that deep down, somewhere inside him, he is good. Just don't _trust_ him. I cannot."

"I'll remember that, Julia. I'm also going to work on him. Not just the automail, but getting him to agree to see you." She placed her hand on Julia's shoulder. "That is, only if you want me to."

"I'd like that. I still love him, you know." She smiled and placed her hand on Winry's, still on her shoulder. "Well, I better leave or you'll not be doing any work at all." She waved at Ivan and left the shop.

Ivan turned a lovely shade of green when Winry told him their first surgery as a team was today AND it was going to be Julia's brother. He was a nervous wreck all morning and he couldn't agree to an earlier time. Despite that, the morning went quickly.

At one o'clock on the dot, the bell on the top of the door chimed and both Ivan and Winry looked up to see Ashley standing in the entryway, with a satchel he had packed for the overnight stay. He grinned sheepishly at the blond mechanic and then nodded at Ivan.

"Good to see you, Ashley." Winry came from behind the counter and wiped her oily hands on a shop cloth. "We've got the surgery ready for you, if you follow me, we can get this started. She took his right hand and as she did, she felt a small shock. It took them both by surprise but only she blushed. "Sorry," she said softly, "I must have scuffled my feet on the rug." She grinned like a schoolgirl, but composed herself enough to guide the dark-haired man to the surgery room, Ivan followed and again his face became a lovely shade of puce.

* * *

 

He wished he had shorts. Edward sat on the hot train seat for hours and wished he was wearing shorts. He contemplated taking his pants off and sitting in his boxers but he was also too hot and lazy to move. Even the looming darkness of night did nothing to quell the heat. Worse of all, his metal leg was heating up like a furnace, not making the situation better but at least he didn't have a scorching metal arm anymore. He had to be thankful for the little things.

"Well," he thought, "I'll just have to get used to this again."

"NEXT STOP! BORDER CITY!" The attendant's voice carried through the car.

He smiled at the thought of getting out of this hot box and into the open air again. Edward hoped he'd not mess this up, he went over what he'd say to her a hundred times during this long trip. He closed his eyes and thought about HER again. In his mind, she was always in Resembool. Her long golden hair swirled around her happy face. And, those EYES! He smiled as he thought about her large ocean pools gazing at him.

At Border City, Amestrian soldiers boarded the train and inspected everyone's papers. Edward handed them his and he quickly passed their inspection. He didn't want to waste time being arrogant and toying with them. He just wanted to get to Table City as fast as possible. Soon the train began moving again and he noticed the track ran along the huge land bridge that he, Alphonse, Julia and that Bastard made years ago. The train came to a stop and they announced Table City. His heart skipped in anticipation. Edward grabbed his only suitcase and stepped out into the hot air of Milos.

No one knew he was coming so there was no car waiting for him. Not sure where to go first, he decided to walk around. Edward knew where Julia lived and he could have easily hailed a cab and started there, but something told him no to do that. His gut told him to survey this place first and that is what he did.

He made his way out of the busy train station and found the same city he left more than two weeks earlier. He remembered this particular neighborhood, the library he used for some of his research was just down the block. As he strolled down the sidewalk, a tall man exited a shop. His eyes widened as he recognized Ivan immediately. He could have called out, but something else told him to stop and let him go, besides, Ivan looked sort of _sick_ and Edward didn't want any part of that. He took a breath and entered the building Ivan had just exited, hoping Winry would be there. He did not notice the simple wooden sign above the doorway "Automail" as he entered nor did he realize the ringing of a bell he moved as he opened the door.

Once inside, he saw that this was an automail shop. Tools of _her_ trade lay on tables and on shelves: metal, wires and _wrenches_ which made him grin. He knew it was pretty late but he could not wait any longer.

"We're not open yet!" A muffled voice carried from the back of the shop. He walked towards it.

Along the back wall stood a row of built in shelves. There against them stretched a short-haired blond trying in vain to reach a metal part on the high shelf. He quickly came up behind her, noticing the end of a wrench tattoo just peaking out of her khaki military style pants at the hip. Thinking she was Winry's assistant, he leaned in close and reached up, grabbing the metal she was trying to grab.

"What the hell?" She muffled again. Then the electric spark ran down her body and she knew. She had a pen in her mouth, distorting her voice. Without realizing it, she released it from her rosy lips and it fell to the ground. It could have caused an earthquake with the tension it released between them.

He realized it too. He knew it was her. The feeling of her body just inches from his own, her _smell_ of sunshine and motor oil. The same electricity flowed down his body and sat stubbornly in the pit of his stomach. "W…W…Winry?" He stammered.

She inhaled sharply. "Edward?" She whispered not turning yet. He dropped the metal part in his hand, letting it roll across the floor. She turned and there they both stood, after a year apart, now only a few inches of air separated them from each other. "Ed!" She forgot herself and wrapped her arms around him fiercely and he responded with the same.

"Winry!" He pulled her closely, wanting to never let her go again. She shook in his embrace. And he relished the feel of her body this close to his own. He didn't notice her reaching into the toolbox on the table. In a swift second, he was seeing stars and she was slapping the just used spanner against her left palm.

"You!" She remembered just why she was at Table City, she remembered why she was mad at HIM. "You big jerk!" She raised the wrench again.

"Cut it out!" He rubbed the red spot on his forehead where she just beaned him. "I didn't come all this way to find you to get beaten up!"

"Oh, so NOW you want to find me, huh?" Her blue eyes glared. "I don't hear from you in MONTHS and now it is important for you to speak to me?"

"Winry!" He pleaded with her. "Take it easy." This was not going as he had planned. He ran his finger through his messy bangs in desperation. He knew she'd be rattled with him, but he had to turn it in his favor. He then realized she had cut off all her gorgeous hair. Suddenly, HE was the one pissed off. "Just, just why did you cut off your HAIR?" He pointed with emphasis. "You, you," He paused, and before he could stop himself the words flew from his lips. "You, you look like a BOY!" Smooth. He saw the short hairs on the back of her neck raise up in anger.

"A BOY?" She started swinging the wrench at him, he deftly dodged each blow. "Just look who's calling the kettle black! Miss Elric! Your _ponytail_ makes YOU look like a GIRL!"

"Take that back!" He again dodged her blows. "And, how could you let someone tattoo your ASS!" The image of some old pervert touching her white skin made he want to throw up.

"This!" She twisted her body so that her left hip was in view and she tugged down the side of her pants so that the whole wrench could be seen. "This is my HIP! If I wanted to tattoo my ASS I would have taken YOU there!" She threw her wrench and it went spinning across the room, hitting Edward squarely on the forehead. He fell backwards with a thud. "Get out! Now!

"Wait!" He yelped holding his head. "This is NOT what I wanted to do, please, can we start over?" He pleaded with her.

"Is everything OK?" A weak voice carried from the door to their right. Standing in the doorway and covered in bandages stood Ashley Crichton.

"What the HELL!" Winry made it to him in two large steps. "Get back in bed! You'll open your wounds!" She turned him around and ushered him back to bed.

"What? What is HE doing here!" Edward followed.

"HE is my patient and I just repaired his shoulder port." She helped him lay back down on the twin hospital bed. She washed her hands in a sink on the far wall and then placed the top of her hand on his forehead and winced. "He's running a fever, there's probably an infection." She looked up at the former alchemist. "Ed! We can yell at each other later, I'll have to monitor him tonight." Winry pointed toward the door. "Leave!"

"What?"

"Just go stay at Julia's. She'll fill you in." She sighed. "I can't deal with you and him at the same time and from what I see, _your_ life is not in immediate danger but _his_ most certainly is."

"You're kicking me out?" His anger started to boil.

"Just get over it and go!" She stood and pointed the way to the door.

"Fine!" He shouted and stormed out of the room. He continued storming out of the shop, slamming the door so hard the bell fell off and landed with a cling on the welcome mat.

"Damn it!" She swore and knew that this was going to be a very long night and a horrible day tomorrow.


	4. Bad Dreams

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When he looked down at her face, he noticed she was twitching slightly and he realized she was deep within a dream.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 6/24/12
> 
> I really love LOVE TRIANGLES. Don't you? I also think it's about time that Edward shows some concern with just where his and Winry's relationship is going to go. I hope I've not written Winry too OOC, because after reading this she seems SO violent towards Ed - not that he doesn't deserve a little bit of it.

She sat by his bedside all night. He shook with fever, requiring many cool cloths for his head. The anti infection drugs we slow acting and the pain medicine only kept him more groggy than pain free. The luxury of a pot of coffee kept her going through his night sweats and delirium and on two occasions when his fever spiked at one hundred and five degrees Fahrenheit, she considered calling Julia. However, Winry Rockbell used her extensive medical knowledge to pull him out of the worst of the night. Now, he lay on the twin bed, breathing heavily and for the first time in the long night sleeping peacefully. The bags under her eyes felt as though they weighed a metric ton and not even the last cup of coffee would keep her awake very long. Her savior, the sound of the opening door sans the broken bell kept her from falling asleep. The pleasant face of Ivan was the most wonderful thing she would remember of the day. He relieved her from her night watch on Ashley and sent her home right away, saying he would cover all her customers that day and she needed to sleep until she felt better. She agreed with no fight and gathered her things and began the short walk in the horrid sunshine back to Julia's house and sleep. She forgot about Edward Elric.

Edward did not forget about Winry. Julia HAD filled him in on why Ashley was there and why Winry was helping him. It did not make Ed feel the least bit better. He did not trust Julia's brother whatsoever. When his mechanic did not come in at midnight, he considered going back to the shop but he dreaded another confrontation with her. Instead, he figured he'd just wait for her in her room, bringing with him his paper covered Xingese book for "comfort." He read and waited until one o'clock and grew listless and really bored. Tossing the book on the floor, he yawned and then decided to snoop around. He found her design sketchbook and began leafing through the pale brown pages. Arm, leg, foot designs flew by as he let the paper sift through his fingers. Ed came upon a familiar drawing and upon closer inspection, realized it was a drawing of his old automail arm. Also, it was a NEW drawing for she had inscribed a recent date. In fact, there were several drawings of his arm in several different positions. He smiled a crooked grin and set the book back in its place.

Two o'clock came and he found himself no longer bored but immensely sleepy. He settled down in a plush upholstered high back chair by the window and stared mindlessly into the night. He awoke at two thirty with a stiff neck. 'Fuck this.' He thought. There was a humongous bed in the room. He COULD have just gone back to his own room, but Edward Elric doesn't always think, especially when he was this sleepy. So, he loosened his button up shirt, took off his boots and crawled into the bed. He figured Winry would be pissed and hit him with something to wake him up any minute.

Winry let herself in at seven in the morning and waived to the housekeeper, Maria, as she drug her tired ass up the long staircase to her room. She wanted a shower but that would have to wait until she got some sleep. She locked the door behind her, not wanting to be disturbed, especially by Edward and she set down her satchel. The morning sun streamed into the open window and she remedied that by pulling the thick drapes, creating almost total darkness in the opulent room. As a master contortionist would, she maneuvered her arms inside her gray tank top and they exited holding her bra, which she unceremoniously tossed aside. Winry then kicked off her sandals and tugged down her pants before letting her body fall heavily on the bed with a thud. She fell into a deep and most welcomed sleep.

At nine am, Ed started to wake but felt immeasurable softness touching his face and shoulder. He opened his eyes to find Winry slumbering peacefully in the crook of his left arm, her small hand upon his chest and INSIDE his unbuttoned shirt. His first reaction was that of happiness. This WAS nice. Reality hit him like a sledgehammer. 'Shit! She's going to clobber me!' He frantically tried to leave before he realized she had come in and fallen asleep WITH him. However, he found that his arm was trapped by her blond head and he couldn't easily free himself without waking her. He was in a pickle. Sweat trickled down his brow and he pondered just how to free himself and sneak out. Ed really didn't want a brain injury this early in the morning and despite her peaceful repose, he was certain she had a wrench on her person for situations like these.

"Crap." He whispered. He then noticed her left hip was turned toward him and in the dim light _that tattoo_ was in full view. It angered him still, that she allowed someone to mar her perfect body, but he couldn't help staring at this thing on her hip. About three inches long, it was a very perfect likeness of her favorite tool, complete with artistic scroll-work and shading. When he looked down at her face, he noticed she was twitching slightly and he realized she was deep within a dream.

In the mechanic's dream, she was back at the shop in town and it was terribly hot. She wore her black tube top and coveralls tied about her waist. Despite being less than clothed, beads of perspiration trickled down her midriff. She held a soldering iron in one hand and a delicate wire board in the other and she began attaching wires to the mechanism that connected to human nerves. Suddenly, two strong hands were upon her own, causing her to drop her work on the table. The young woman turned to beat this person to a pulp and felt strong lips crushing her own. Her anger morphed to a state of compliance as this person had her body in his total control with kisses strong and tender. His tongue explored her mouth and this new experience caused places she didn't know existed within her to tingle. She opened her blue eyes to gaze upon the golden ones of Edward and he attacked her lips once more, turning her body to his and holding her tightly. She spent one second debating whether or not to pummel him, then decided to just 'go with the flow' and kill him when he was done. Her body responded automatically to his touch, she was no longer in control and she sort of liked that. Winry closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him permission to attack her with more passion. He touched her in places best friends _shouldn't_ touch each other and she let him as the feelings the touch erupted within her were new and FANTASTIC. She opened her eyes to smile at his no doubt goofy and 'proud of himself' face and was startled to see that it was not Edward holding her. It was not Edward who was kissing her, who was touching her this way. She stared into the face of none other than Ashley Crichton!

Edward couldn't help himself. Maybe it was the hour or so he spent reading "his book." Maybe it was that her boyish haircut _was_ cute and she pursed her lips in such a way to make them look irresistible. He couldn't stop himself from turning her head up to his and softly kissing her right on her lips. He knew that the cleaning lady would have to scrape what was left of his body off the walls when Winry woke up and murdered him, but he couldn't stop himself, he HAD to kiss her right there as he held her in his arms. It felt wonderful. Despite her hard-ass personality, her lips were soft and welcoming…at least when she was sleeping. She moaned and began to kiss him back. 'Hot damn!' He thought he might have a chance at survival if she was liking this, so he carefully pulled his left arm from under her head and pulled her closer to him and recommitted his lips to hers. Edward spent one second recognizing that this was their FIRST kiss and it wasn't right because she was asleep but he quickly moved on to trying to find out just how much he could get away with before she clobbered him. She wiggled her body closer to him and wrapped her arms around his neck as they kissed. She made sounds of approval so he kept up. Realizing that he had to stop this before his body would punish him, he pulled away and looked upon her beautiful face. Her eyes were still closed but she mouthed words he couldn't understand and then she finally spoke with clarity.

"….Ashley."

"What the HELL!" He shrieked as he leaped out of bed, dumping Winry on the pillows.

"Ed?" At first she was confused, she was having a very NICE dream and then Edward was screaming at her. She realized that her face felt flush and places in her still tingled AND her lips felt swollen as if…they had been _kissed_.

"Just why the FUCK were you dreaming of HIM!" Edward demanded, his eyes full of idiotic rage.

"Edward? Were, you…were you kissing me?" Her blue eyes turned to red with anger. "Were you kissing me when I was asleep?" She stood to face him, not caring that she was wearing nothing but underwear and a tank top.

"No! Well….yeah, but wait! Why did you say his name?" He started to get nervous.

"I was DREAMING you idiot!" She started to look around the room for a heavy steel tool she could smack him with. "I can't help what I dream!" She stomped around the bed knowing that she had a number 42 Bentfort toggle wrench in her satchel, when her toes caught on something in the floor causing her to trip and fall on her face. She turned to sit on her bottom and discovered that the offending item she tripped on was a book. She picked it up.

Edward couldn't help but laugh when she fell, it was very funny. It was funny until he realized just what book she held in her hands.

"Uh, Winry, let me have that!" He lunged at her trying to rip the paper covered book from her hands. She was fully awake now and able to dodge his grasp.

"You don't want me to read this book, huh?" She opened it on one of the tabs and came face to face with a male and female Xingese couple doing _curious_ things to each other AND they were naked. "What is this?" She demanded, jumping out of Ed's grasp once more. She turned to another page and this time her eyes were assaulted by the image of _two_ _males_ doing different things to each other.

"Come on, Winry! Don't look at those!" Edward couldn't catch her now, she was running around the room like a chicken, as she leafed through this book.

"YOU PERVERT!" She threw the book at his head and it hit him squarely on the face. "IS THIS WHY YOU WERE IN HERE?" She made it to her satchel and pulled out the number 42. " Edward! Answer me!"

"NO!" He picked the book off the floor. "It's not what you think Winry!" He was sure she would never believe the truth about this book.

"Do you know what I think?" She stalked him, holding the wrench. "I think you were gone too long out here." She swung at him, missing. "I think YOU thought you could simply waltz back into my life and live out your FANTASIES from that BOOK!"

"I swear, it's not like that!" He tried to plead with her, instead, he got a heavy piece of steel to his nose. "Ow!" He pinched his nostrils to stay the slow red trickle of blood. "That book is part of my RESEARCH!" He stuffed the book into his shirt. "I just came to your room to wait for you and try to talk to you again." He sat down on the bed, hoping she wouldn't hit him again. "I just fell asleep!" He let his head fall into his hand. "Why?"

"Why what?" She raised the tool above her head.

"Why did you say his name?" Edward didn't care if she clobbered him anymore, he changed from fear of her anger to hurt from her words.

"Edward!" She dropped the wrench. "GET OUT NOW!" She pointed to the door.

It was the second time in as many days that Winry Rockbell threw Edward out, this time SHE slammed the door behind him, knocking him to the red carpet of the hallway.

* * *

The tall young man squirmed in the hot train car. It was ten o'clock in the morning and about eighty-five degrees Fahrenheit already. The train finally stopped in Table City station and he made his way with all the other passengers to the bustling terminal. He traveled light, carrying only a leather satchel so he didn't have to wait for the porters to unload any luggage. Instead, he decided to get right down to the business at hand and that would mean a short walk into the city center.

He stopped at corner stand just to purchase a local paper, he gave the seller a few cenz and received a copy of Table City Times. He was also happy that Amestrian cenz were an accepted currency in Table City - practically a new country now. He stood to the side as more people passed him. He didn't notice a teeny article on the back of the paper entitled, "Philosopher from the West Cures Orphans!" He folded the paper into the crook of his arm and began walking.

Everywhere he looked, buildings were being repaired or constructed. He smiled as he was happy to see this building boom here in Table City. That would mean that there was commerce and that money flowed into the hands of the people of Milos. However, he started becoming unnerved at the looks he garnered from the locals- especially the young ladies. The young man appeared rather dashing in his light suite complete with a handsome brown fedora. He nodded to several cute girls who giggled their response. 'I think I'm going to like Table City,' he thought fondly. He placed his hands in his pockets and strutted proudly down the street and then around a corner.

Bam!

Another young man traveling at the same quick pace came around the corner at the exact same time and both young men hit each other's shoulders almost knocking themselves down. The fedora-clad man straightened himself up and was prepared to offer an apology, despite the fact he was certain it was BOTH of their faults for the accident. Before he opened his mouth, however, he was met with a verbal tirade that would make a sailor blush.

"You god-damned idiot! Don't you even LOOK where you're going?"

"Well, I didn't see you, and, I think we both took that corner too fast…."

"So it's MY fault? That's it, I'M KICKING YOUR ASS!"

Before the man in the hat could prepare for it, a fist came flying at his face, hitting him squarely on the jaw. The hit was hard, but tolerable, he shrugged off the blow and prepared for the next. This time it was a kick coming at him from his left, but he was ready and deflected the kick with his arm causing his assailant to jump back and follow through with another roundhouse kick.

"No you don't!" The suited man yelled and grabbed his shorter assailant by his left leg and flung him aside like a garbage bag tossed to a dumpster….in fact, a dumpster is exactly where the attacker found himself.

"Automail?" Fedora boy said out loud, realizing the leg he grabbed was hardened steel and not flesh. 'Was that blond hair too?' he thought to himself. 'No, couldn't be." He quickly made his way to the dumpster and peered inside.

"Son of a bitch!" The man inside said dumpster yelled. "I'm going to KILL YOU!" He brought his hand up to pull himself out of the garbage and he and the other youth came face to face. Two pairs of golden eyes met for the first time in over a year.

"You know, you're talking about OUR mother, that's a terrible thing to say, Edward."

"Al? Alphonse?" Indeed it was Edward Elric in that dumpster. He reached out and the younger Elric grabbed his hand, helping him to his feet. He stood and brushed the garbage debris off his clothes and came face to face with his baby brother. Not waiting or caring who saw, he launched himself and latched his arms around Al's arms in a huge bear hug and tried to lift him up, only succeeding in raising him an inch or so. "Goddamn you're huge, Al!" He stepped back and surveyed the entire six foot three expanse of the younger Elric, a teeny pang of jealousy welling in his belly.

"I'm not all THAT huge…" He smiled a crooked grin. "Good to see you too, brother!"

"Not that I'm complaining, I AM happy to see you, but why did you come here?" Ed pulled an orange peel out of his hair and tossed it to the ground and the two started walking.

"Well, funny you ask," Alphonse laughed, "but I'm on a mission for Amestris." He turned and winked at his brother.

"What?" Ed stopped and glared at his little brother. "Did you get drug into an espionage mission for the State? Who drafted you for this?"

Alphonse couldn't hold back his laughter any more. He let loose a strong cackle, holding his middle as he did. "Edward, relax. I'm not a spy or anything." He smiled at his brother. "Mustang sent me on a mission to get you and Winry engaged so you'll come back fast. He's really impatient to learn the alchemy you found in Creta."

"What…the…fuck!" Edward growled. "Does he not have enough to do? I can take care of this MYSELF! I DON'T NEED ANYONE'S HELP!" He swiped his hand in front of him for effect.

"OK then, tell me, when is the wedding?" Al smirked. "So when can I expect to rent a tuxedo?"

"Al!" Edward knew where he was going with this. "You know it's not that EASY, it's WINRY for fuck's sake."

"Yeah, Winry's tough, but I also know YOU'VE got your issues too big brother." He took his hand and pushed the hat back on his head so he could see Edward more clearly. "I mean, other than the hug at Risembool Station, have you actually KISSED her?"

"For your information, mister nosey pants, YES, I have!" He pointed.

" _Nosey pants_?" Al giggled. "Mature, Ed. So…you all are on GOOD terms then? So have you ASKED her yet?"

"Well, it's complicated! I can't just pop the question! I'm working my way there!"

"Ed?"

"What?"

"Are you and Winry fighting?"

"No, well, how'd the hell did you know?" He hated that Alphonse could read him so well.

"You just picked a fight with me thinking I was a total stranger and you can't stop gritting your teeth. I know you're mad about something and normally that's Winry if you two are around each other." They ended up back in Julia's neighborhood by this time and Edward let them to the guards. "Woo who, this is a big house!"

"Yeah, we're staying with Julia Crichton, she's a senator now and has to stay in a more secure place like this." He discussed Al with the guards who reluctantly let him in. They strolled down the cobblestone driveway until they came to the front door, also guarded. After another brief discussion with the guards there, Ed and Al gained access to the home.

"Julia, huh? How is she?" Al strained to ask this.

"She's fine…."

"That's good…is she home?"

"Nah, she left early this morning, Maria said she had some important delegates from Amestris to meet and negotiate with today." His squinted his eyes. "What's wrong, Al, are you gonna MISS her?"

"Ed! No, I just haven't seen her in YEARS and she's never seen me since I got my body back."

"Hmmmm. You sound nervous. Afraid of making someone jealous?" The made their way through a wood paneled entry way.

"What? Just who are you talking about Ed?"

"I don't know, some little bean girl back in Xing?" He started to laugh but a loud growl emanated from his gut, proof that missing breakfast because of his and Winry's fight was a mistake.

"May? Edward, she's, she's only about thirteen, that's just, that's just not right!" He blushed. "Are you hungry?" He tried to change the subject of May.

"Famished. Come on, kitchen's over here." He and Al made their way into an enormous kitchen where an older lady with dark hair busied herself at the stove. "Maria!" Edward came up behind her and hugged her.

"Mister Edwardo." She cooed, smacking his cheek with her left hand as she stirred the pot with her right. "You left so suddenly and missed breakfast."

"I'm sorry about that," he motioned to Al. "I hope it didn't cause you any trouble." He smiled with all his charm. "This is my little brother, Alphonse."

"Mercy! You are not little!" Her dark eyes sparkled as she took in the sigh of Al. "Mister Alphonse, you are a giant!" She laughed.

"I'm not so big." He chuckled.

"I bet you boys are hungry." She placed a heavy lid on the large pot and readied to place it in the oven. "I've got some leftover chicken for sandwiches in the refrigerator, let me get it for you." She groaned as she tried to lift the heavy pot and was ushered away by Edward who lifted it with ease and placed it in the oven and closed the door. "That Edward, he is so helpful!" She pinched his cheek. "I give him the biggest portion of stew tonight at supper!" She made her way to the refrigerator and started dragging out chicken, cheese, mustard and various things to compose a sandwich.

"Maria takes good care of us here." Ed smiled and he meant it. He found that with a little help from him and flattery, he was treated to some of the best cooking from the old lady and in fact, in her eyes, he could do no wrong in this house. He liked this treatment and he found himself becoming very thoughtful and polite in Maria's presence because it usually got him a reward in the form of a cake, a cookie or something equally delicious.

"I have to take care of you children!" She referred to Julia, Winry and Ed. "You have no one else to do it!"

"They are very lucky to have you, Maria." Alphonse said with genuine affection.

"Oh, you so good, just like Edwardo here." She patted him on the head and placed a huge chunk of chicken on his plate, much to Ed's dismay. "How's this, boys? It enough?"

"This is just great, Maria, thank you." Ed smiled at Al as they sat at the large butcher block table in the kitchen that was laden with food for them.

"Good, now eat. That Winry still sleeping, save some for her!" She pointed.

"We will." The boys answered like children.

"I dun know why dat girl give you so much trouble, Edwardo." She pinched his cheek again. "You such a cute little man." She laughed as Ed frowned at the "little" comment. Al didn't miss that at all. "I give you boys time to talk and eat." She smiled and left the room.

"I think I'm going to have a hard time on this mission, brother." Al had made a large chicken sandwich and took a larger bite.

"Why's that?"

"Well," He swallowed. "Why would you ever want to leave with this woman FEEDING you so much?"

"Hey! She likes me!"

"Yeah, you're her _little man_." he smirked.

"Cut it out!"

"So, I need to ask, brother, are you and Winry fighting?"

"Don't skirt around the issue, get right to the point little brother."

"Well?"

"Of course!" He slammed his sandwich down.

"Edward. Are you going to tell me what happened?"

"No."

"God. I'm going to be here a looooong time." He palmed his forehead.

"I kissed her." Ed resumed munching his sandwich angrily and sulked down in his chair.

"But brother, you say that like it was a BAD thing? What happened? Why'd you say it that way?"

"Well, she was….she was….she was SLEEPING at the time."

Alphonse palmed his face again and stared at his brother. "Ed, you know, I have to get back to Xing sometime this year, my research is not over."

"She was mad." He continued to scrunch his face and munch on his sandwich.

"I wouldn't expect any less of her." Al exhaled sharply. "And?"

"It gets better….she was having a dream about someone…someone not me."

This time Al slunk down in his chair. "Go on."

"She was dreaming about Ashley Crichton, Al. That evil bastard is back."

"Ed."

"Go on, say it."

"Anything else?"

"Yeah, Winry found my book." He reached into his shirt and brought out the innocent looking paper bound book and set it on the table beside his brother. Alphonse picked it up and began leafing through the pages. His happy face contorted to horror.

"Ed. You're an idiot." He saw the naughty pictures, but as an alchemist, he also noticed something else-Edward's telltale use of code. The paragraphs under the raunchy illustrations had certain letters underlined once, twice and some three times. He recognized the code immediately. "You're supposed to use a cookbook. You're in so much trouble."

"Yeah, I figured that."

"So, are you going to tell me about this or are you going to make me read and decipher this whole book and make Winry think I'm a lecher too?"

"Hmmm, now that you say it that way, it's better to have two lechers in the family than just me!"

"Edward!" Al slammed the book down on the table.

"Easy, easy, yeah, it'll take you too long to figure it out on your own. And I don't want you to be alone with it either, you'd likely gunk it up."

"Hey!" Al protested.

"Yeah, I'll tell you. Boy, I'll tell you." He smiled, smirked, then resumed devouring his sandwich.

"Good, then I'll have to figure out how to repair what frazzled relationship you and Winry have so I can get back."

"I'll take any help you can give me at this point."

* * *

Winry's sleep had been restless after Ed left, or after she had thrown him out. She was so mad at him for taking advantage of her as she slept and she scolded herself for not noticing him sleeping in her bed when she came in early that morning. The big question in her mind, the question that was nagging at her and keeping her from committing to sleep was just why she was having _that_ sort of dream about Ashley Crichton. After all, she did come here hoping she'd be close to and actually see Edward - despite any verbal denials she told anyone else. Why then did this stranger make her feel this way? Why did Ed have to read pornography? Well, that question was obvious. He was a boy after all. She rolled over and hugged the thick feather pillow in her hands. She'd just have to man up and figure this out and hopefully not kill Edward in the process _._


	5. Trinkhörner!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Do you look at your enemies like that…before you're about to kick their ass?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 7/31/12 A/N: This chapter was very slow coming! I'm in no way tired of this story line, I just wanted to do other things besides commit to paper (er save a file) the story already in my head, if you know what I mean. I've always thought that Alchemy would work different and would be possible for Edward to use even without his gate. I hope you understand my explanation of this, or how I see this being possible. Oh, Trinkhörner means "drinking horn."

"Tim Marcoh was wrong." Ed took a sip of his orange soda as he and his brother sat on matching barstools in the small tavern near Julia's home.

"Go on." Al was irritated. He had wanted to drag Edward upstairs, break down Winry's door and force the two to work out their issues so he could return to Xing. Ed dangled the promise of new and exciting alchemy in front of the younger Elric so, despite his better judgment, he agreed to leave with Ed and discuss "the book" and the secrets his elder brother discovered in Creta.

"Remember when we were underneath Central, and met "Father" for the first time? "

"Yeah…"

"…And how we couldn't perform Alchemy but Scar and Bean-Girl..." He was interrupted by Alphonse angrily clearing his throat. "…I mean,  _May, "_ Edward glared at his brother, "…May could use  _their_  alchemy even though we couldn't - no alchemist in the vicinity could."

"It was a conundrum we couldn't figure out."

" _Conundrum_ , that's a big word,  _little_  brother." Edward laughed but Al answered him with a punch to his left shoulder. "Ow!" He rubbed his shoulder but relished the familiarity of acting this way with Alphonse after such a long time apart. "Anyway, Marcoh was wrong. His notes said that the origin of Amestrian Alchemy was the energy created from the movement of the plates across Earth's crust, the seismic movements created this energy that alchemists tapped into in order to deconstruct something then reconstruct it into something different. Al, that's NOT where the energy comes from at all." He smiled a wicked smile, the same smile the fifteen-year old Edward made before he was about to kick someone's ass.

"Edward?"

"When I exchanged my Gate of Truth for your body, I lost the ability to perform alchemy." That smirk transformed in an instant into a loving smile. Al's expression did not change. "That made me think that there was a bigger link between the gate and alchemy. That, and the way Scar and May used it. Al, the gate IS the source of power, the gate itself is the energy alchemists draw upon in their transmutations-not the energy from the Earth."

"That's, that's impossible." Al was trying to wrap his mind around what his brother just told him. The Gate, Truth himself, perhaps, were the source of the energy that fueled his alchemic reactions.

"I don't yet understand just  _where_  the energy of the Gate is coming from, but I'm certain it's there and we are tapping into it when we …well, when  _you_  transmute or activate an array." Ed caught Al wincing as he reminded them both only Al could perform alchemy now.

"Brother, does that mean that what Scar used- what May and alkahestrists use is a different energy, it comes from somewhere else?" He knew where Edward was going with this. He could also perform simple alkahestry thanks to May.

"Yup. You know it, you should know it well by now."

"The  _Dragon's Pulse_." Al whispered and Edward nodded while smiling.

"The Xingese alkahestry taps into the movement of the earth and the molten rock moving there - the  _dragon_  moving under the crust. That was the reason Father couldn't stop Scar and May from pulling from that power source, not the Gate. Father was to single-minded, he couldn't grasp- despite how smart he thought he was, that there were  _other_  ways to use alchemy!" Edward seemed very proud of himself and proceeded to slurp the last bit of soda through his straw.

"Wanna refill on that, young man?" The barkeep came by. Ed nodded and he took his glass. On his way to the soda fountain, he switched on a radio mounted above the bar. Music piped softly through the tavern.

"Edward, are  _you_  using this alchemy or alkahestry- whatever it is?" Al squinted his eyes at his brother and a fresh glass of orange soda was placed in front of the elder Elric. Edward cracked a stupid smile from ear to ear as a news bulletin came upon the radio.

_The Philosopher of the West has struck again! Eastern Creta news agency reports the sick and ailing lepers of Neetsville leper colony were cured! The ministry of health is on the scene. Witnesses report an old man, traveling alone, visited the colony and made his way to all the residents, healing them…._

"Ed!" Al leaned closer to his brother. "You can?"

"Shhhhh," Edward shushed his little brother. "It's not the same as before, Al. I've had to, well,  _adapt_  a little."

"What do you mean?"

"I cannot deconstruct. Not that I've been able to figure out. I can only  _construct_  using elements that already exists." He removed his glass from the damp napkin and pulled a pen out of his pocket. He drew a simple transmutation circle on the napkin. "Let's see." He looked around. "Al, gimme some money, a paper bill." Alphonse scrunched his nose but pulled out a paper note and handed it to Ed who immediately ripped it into several pieces.

"Hey!"

"Calm down and watch." He placed the pieces on the array and activated it. A tiny spark emitted from the paper and the frayed edges slowly joined until the bill was whole again. Ed handed it to Alphonse.

"So, you can fix things?"

"Yeah, mostly." He smirked again and Alphonse knew that there was more to it than that.

* * *

Winry let the hot water run down her face in the shower. It helped freshen her mind and her spirit after the horrible morning sleeping. She reckoned it was about one in the afternoon and poor Ivan was manning the shop alone. She turned off the water and stepped onto a fuzzy bath mat and threw on a fuzzier bathrobe. These were the perks of staying with Julia. She wiped the steam off of the vanity mirror and grabbed a towel to dry her hair. She brushed her golden short locks but became dismayed at her reflection. She wished she had long hair again. Winry sighed and tousled her bangs with her hands. She got dressed and grabbed her leather satchel and walked the long hallway to the stairs. She remembered she hadn't eaten in a long while and her stomach growled in anger so she took a side trip to the kitchen. There on the table was a humongous chicken sandwich with all the trimmings. On top of the sandwich was a paper note. She recognized Edward's messy handwriting immediately:  _Please forgive me._ She turned the note over as she smiled:  _Meet me at the Green Serpent 8:00. Big surprise. You'll like it._ _Ed._  He drew a smiley face beside his signature.

"Dummy." She smiled. Yeah, she'd meet him for dinner at this restaurant. She took the sandwich and wrapped it in wax paper, grabbed some apples and placed it all in her satchel to share with Ivan. Winry then decided that she'd stop by Myrtle's Dress Shop on her way since she'd been eyeing a blue cotton sundress on one of the mannequins in the window for about a week now. Yes, Edward deserved to see her wearing blue tonight.

At two o'clock, Winry entered the shop in silence-the bell at the top of the door was still broken. She strode behind the counter and put down her satchel and the pretty pink box containing her new dress and shoes. She took out the sandwich and placed it on the counter.

"Ivan!" She looked around, not seeing him anywhere. "Hmmm." She muttered and took a bite of her sandwich.  _Damn. Ed makes a great sandwich_ , she thought.

"He's out." A faint voice carried from on of the patient recovery rooms. She knew immediately that Ashley was still here. Winry placed her lunch down on the counter, wiped her hands on her pants and took a deep breath and went into the room.

"Hey?" She smiled at the site of her patient. He was sitting up, reading with a book precariously balanced on his knee. "You look so much better than last night." She came up to him and placed her hand on his forehead. Feeling his temperature appeared to be normal, she motioned for him to allow her to inspect the port upgrade to his left shoulder. "Can I check?"

"Knock yourself out." he joked and moved this left side toward her while she washed her hands in the adjoining sink.

She dried her hands, then slowly began unwrapping the bandages that enveloped his chest and shoulder. Just a tiny bit of blood marred them, evident that Ivan had changed the dressing recently. When the metal port came into her view, she inspected the raw, red skin and was pleased that there was no sign of infection and his body seemed to be accepting the metal. She reached into a drawer and pulled out a tube of antibiotic salve, squirted a good dollop on her fingers and began to rub it into the red skin around the metal port. This elicited an unexpected response from Ashley.

"You have a soft touch," He moaned.

It threw her aback that he was  _enjoying_  this so she finished applying the medicine quickly and started re-wrapping his bandages. "Your wounds are healing just fine. I can begin constructing the arm now." She finished the bandages and stood in front of him. "We need to discuss the design, what your specific needs are for this arm."

"I'm a soldier." His faced turned pensive. "It will have to be strong and durable. Withstand hot temperatures. I'll need it to fight, you know."

"Fighting means breaking automail." She narrowed her eyes. Edward had that same problem when he had an automail arm. "No matter how well the quality, it is just metal and wires."

"That's the nature of my job. Is there any way you can incorporate a weapon into the design? Like a dagger or firearm? That would give me a certain edge, you know."

"I'm sure I can." She'd never put a gun in any of her automail. Sure, she'd seen all sorts of automail containing weapons, she recalled the soldiers at Briggs having peculiar offensive automail. Paninya had cannons in her knees too. So she knew that what Ashley asked was possible, she just had never done it. Come to think of it, Edward had  _never_  asked her to do that to his arm or leg. He relied on his fighting skills and alchemy, but she wondered if he had a gun in his arm if that would have helped him. "But, I don't like it."

"Just a gun. It's necessary for a soldier and it might save my life."

"Learn to fight better, no, learn to  _negotiate_  better and you'll not need to fight." Winry was pleased with her answer.

"Negotiations are for the politicians. It doesn't help me at all." He knew she didn't like violence. Her dossier told him how her parents were killed and that she  _befriended_  their killer to help Edward during the Promised Day incident in Amestris. She most certainly was a pacifist. Weak.

"Then perhaps you should run for office." She said this lightheartedly. "Ashley, you can go home today, I don't see any need in keeping you another night. Me or Ivan will check on you this evening and bring you your prescriptions. I'll give you enough pain medicine until then." She turned and put up the salve.

"I'd rather YOU come by and check on me, Winry." He oozed charm.

"Well…" She'd have to take Edward with her to check on Ashley after dinner. Ed would HATE this. Too bad. "it will have to be around nine, I'm having dinner out tonight."

"That'd be perfect."

"Ashley, have you had anything to eat?"

"No, just water. Ivan was afraid to let me have any food so soon after the surgery." His stomach growled.

"Just where IS Ivan? It's not like him to leave the shop unattended." She really did find it odd that he was missing.

"His wife called and there was some sort of emergency, he told me you'd be in soon."

"That's so unlike Ivan." Winry worried about her partner and decided to call him. "But you must be starved!" She ran back into the main shop room and grabbed the sandwich and apples from her satchel. She found a piece of sheet metal to use as a tray and two icy sodas from the small refrigerator under the counter. She returned to the recovery room carrying a small feast. "I hope you like chicken!" She set the tray on the bed and excused herself to check on Ivan.

Ashley, indeed was grateful for the sandwich, his stomach churned and grumbled as he heard the mechanic on the phone in the shop outside. 'She truly is a good person,' he thought. 'I'll have an advantage.' He smiled knowing exactly what he would do. He heard her place down the telephone receiver and then her shining face was in the doorway.

"Save some for me!" She grabbed the other half of the wax paper wrapped sandwich and set it down on the table and having carried a soda opener, she picked up the icy sodas and opened one for each of them.

"I hope everything was fine with Ivan." Ashley mumbled in between bites of chicken.

"His wife, Carmen, she's having another baby in a few months. I was worried she was ill, but it was really noting big - she ran out of spicy mustard and couldn't leave the little ones to go to the market." She chuckled."

"Spicy mustard?" Why on Earth would a woman call her husband home for that? "Just how many kids does Ivan have?"

Winry chuckled. "I guess YOU'VE never been around many pregnant women! Carmen was CRAVING the mustard and would go insane unless she had some for her lunch." She took a swig of soda. "AND, at last count, Ivan has nine children. All the older ones are at school and she couldn't leave the little ones. AND have you SEEN Carmen? She's huge! The doctor wants her to stay off her feet as much as possible and usually she has her Granny to help, but not today for some reason."

"You are a very lenient business owner." He took a drink and swallowed, looking at her incredulously. "This is not a sound way to run a shop."

"Look, I don't know how you run your business, but here, we take care of each other!" She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "Ivan covered for me for HOURS yesterday so I could sleep after staying up all night to nurse YOU back to health." Her anger came to the surface. "I can't get upset for him taking an hour to tend to his very pregnant wife!" She had finished her sandwich and crumpled the wax paper into a ball and tossed it into the trashcan across the room, proud of herself for making the shot. She grabbed a yellow apple and her soda. "When he gets back, I'll have him help you to your hotel room. Make yourself comfortable, I have to work!" And with that, she sauntered out of the recovery room leaving the door open.

"She is a firecracker, that one." The dark-haired man smirked and finished his lunch.

* * *

Edward was very nervous. He'd polished himself up like a shiny piece of silver. He wore a light suit, purchased with Al's help that day and he decided that after a very long time, he'd once again braid his hair. He looked to his left and right, then spat into his right palm and with both hands, plastered his single antenna of hair into place. He laughed and then straightened up the red flower he bought for his lapel. His face was ruddy and glowing after having showered and freshly shaved off his blond stubble. He sat rather dashingly, varying his positions, practicing sitting in ways that he thought would make him look irresistible to Winry as she came into the restaurant and saw him.

"You clean up pretty good!" A feminine laugh echoed behind him and instead of turning around, he bend his head backwards to see the tired face of Julia Crichton.

"Julia! I didn't know if Maria got you the message or not in time." He righted himself and stood then pulled out a chair for the Senator. "I'm so glad! I have a surprise for BOTH you and Winry."

"I'm wondering if I should be nervous or not." She giggled as she took her seat and Edward soon followed. "After the day I had today, I really could use a GOOD surprise, not a bad one." She closed her eyes.

"I think you'll like this." His mood turned serious. "Anything you want to or  _can_  talk about? I know you have a serious meeting today with the Amestrian dignitaries."

"I trust you, Edward." She turned toward him. "Our President, the other Senators and I met with your Fuhrer, Fuhrer Grumman."

"It didn't go well?"

"Depends on how you look at it. I supposed it went well for Amestris." She sighed. "They want us to hand over control of Milos to them once more. And Ed, we are considering it."

"What? After how far you've come on your own?"

"Yeah, by only the grace of gods have neither Creta or Amestris launched an offensive against us in three years, but that can't last for long. There are too many valuable resources below the city and in the valley, one of which is the geothermal energy we are producing, thanks to Creta's example."

"You don't want another war." He though back to the time of the uprising. Many Milosians and Amestrians died in that strife as well as to make the sanguine star Julia later swallowed.

"Never again. I never want to see that happen again. If we can negotiate an agreement where we can come under the protection of Amestris, share our resources but maintain self rule, our government is really considering handing Milos over. And, since the fall of the Bradley administration, it seems the new regime is more compassionate and fair."

"Grumman is a good man, I do know that." Edward added. "But it just  _feels_  wrong after all your people have been through."

"I know. It scares the hell out of me. But the alternative also terrifies me." She looked very sad.

"Julia, think about this tomorrow. Tonight, let's have some fun!" He patted her hand and she responded with a smile.

"I sure need to have some fun…" That sparkling voice trickled through his ears directly into his brain. He stood to come face to face with Winry. She smiled at him, a good sign.

"Win…." He was speechless. Like the first night he found her in the shop, the electricity between them lit the room. She was wearing a pale blue sundress, almost the color of her eyes. She had pulled one corner of her bangs back with a sparkling blue barrette AND he could see the most subtle shimmer of rosy pink gloss on her lips.

"Do I look ok?" She worried for a minute as Edward stared at her dumbfounded and without words until Julia kicked him in his flesh shin, breaking the spell.

"Beautiful." Edward almost whispered.

"You look very nice too, Ed." She took his right hand and held it in both of her own. They both felt as if all the people in the room melted away until just the two of them stood together with those electric sparks hitting both of their bodies. A subtle snapping sound broke their trance.

"Hello? Anyone here?" Alphonse waved his hand between Winry and Ed's faces and snapped. Winry's eyes left Edward and her eyes grew wide and watery at the sight of the younger Elric in front of her.

"Surprise!" Ed yelped.

"Al!" Winry leapt into the tall blonde's arms and he squeezed her tightly. When they broke their embrace, She had to wipe the tears from her eyes. "I didn't think I'd see you in a LONG time, Al." She leaned up and gave him a peck on his cheek, causing him to blush.

"I couldn't stay gone forever. I thought a small reunion was in order." He smiled, himself as dashing as his older brother and also in a light suit. Winry moved to the side and Al's golden eyes met the crystal-turquoise ones of Julia Crichton, now standing before him. Alphonse knew that he'd be meeting Julia here tonight, but he never ever expected her presence to have such a profound effect on his body. His heart started beating rapidly and he palms began to sweat. "J,J, Julia!"

"Wow, Alphonse. You sure are handsome." She stood demurely before Al as she scratched the back of his neck nervously. Edward and Winry's smiles teased them both.

"It's great to see you, too, Julia." His human voice squeaked inciting giggles from the Senator. He couldn't stop staring at her in her red strapless dress with her single green-stoned earring sparkling in the candlelight.

"Well, I don't know about you three, but I'm starving, let's order some food!" Edward waved at the waiter as everyone sat down.

The rest of the evening went marvelously for Edward. He knew he oozed charm and not once did he and Winry argue. In fact, he couldn't remember a time they joked and talked with each other for so long without someone getting angry at the other. Al and Julia seemed to be having a wonderful dinner as well and often whispered into each other's ears while Ed became lost in Winry and ignored them. After a long while, they devoured their meal, paid their bill and the boys escorted the girls outside the restaurant.

"That was one of the best meals I've ever had!" Winry exclaimed as the four of them stood outside in the warm summer air.

"Me too, almost as good as spicy Xingese food." Al responded.

"What now? It's still early, and I don't really want to go home." Julia wrapped her arm through Al's elbow and leaned into him. Shocked at first, the tall Elric smiled and took her in.

"Well, if I remember, there's pretty neat Cretan Pub down the street. Winry, you've had to have passed it, it's near your shop." Ed followed Al's lead and offered his arm to the blonde who smiled and wrapped her own arm in his.

"I think I know where it is. I'd love to go." She smiled and held onto Edward's arm.

They arrived at the pub happy to see it alive with patrons. In one corner, a small quartet consisting of a guitar, bass, drum and some sort of pipe played merry music and even a few people were dancing a funny sort of jig. It was very warm inside which only encouraged the consumption of cold ale. The four found a comfortable wooden table near the bar and sat down. Suddenly, the piper stopped and shouted.

"Trinkhörner!"

Out of nowhere, someone produced a humongous horn. It was about fifteen inches long, curved and hollow. The base and tip were silver and it was attached to an ornate stand. It had been filled past the brim with cold beer and as the band started to play another bouncy tune, the stand and the horn were separated, the stand disappeared while the horn landed into the happy hands of a patron. The large man held it high as the rest of the bar chanted: "Trinkhörner! Trinkhörner!" They egged the man to down the contents of the horn in one quick gulp. The horn was quickly refilled using 3 full steins of beer and the patron's eyes roamed the bar for the next drinking horn victim. His brown eyes soon met the golden gaze of one Edward Elric and before the young man could protest, he became the proud owner of the horn.

"You have to drink it, you know." Julia giggled. "It's a tradition. You can't set it down without the stand, so you have to drink it and pass it on to the next person."

"Brother, it appears to be a rule…"

"Ed, you're gonna get sick!" Winry teased.

"Well, if it's a  _rule_  and all…" He grinned mischievously then knocked back the horn. It took him considerably longer to empty the contents than it did the first patron, but he managed to. Ed wiped the foam from his lips and let out a satisfied burp which elicited a roar of laughter from the crowd and before he knew it, the horn was full of beer once more.

"Trinkhörner! Trinkhörner!" The small crowd cheered on as Edward scanned the three people at his table for the next victim. His eyes met the honey irises of his brother which silently told him 'Bring it on, Ed.' Next to Julia whose stare meant, 'Do it and I'll make sure they don't find your body.' Then to Winry. Winry's face silently said to him, 'I have a large wrench in my tiny purse and will smash your head in.' He thought after the alcohol in the beer invaded his system he could very well handle a beating from the love of his life so he placed the large drinking horn into her small hands.

"Um, Trinkhörner, Win." He cracked a grin.

"You are so dead." She growled. "You think THIS is a challenge?" Ed just laughed as she began gulping the beer, finishing must faster than he did. His grin changed to a look of worry. She wiped the foam from her mouth as the horn was refilled and before the alchemist knew it, he was holding the horn again and it was quickly refilled. "Trinkhörner, Alchemy Freak." She put her hands on her hips. The people roared, seeing that the battle was indeed on.

"This may get ugly." Julia whispered into Al's ear.

"Or, it may do my work for me." Alphonse snickered at Julia's confusion. He was going to let those two imbeciles get wasted  _together_.

After several rounds of drinking - Al lost count after five - The bartender decided that others should have turn and took the horn away from Ed and gave it to another patron. The damage had already been done. Winry and Edward had long forgot the contest but now were giggling and laughing at everything.

"I'm going to settled up the tab." Alphonse hoped he had enough money to pay for the beer they imbibed. As he walked away, he noticed Edward could not keep his hands off Winry, he was holding her hand, then touching her hair AND the mechanic evidently liked it. "Julia! Come with?" He extended his hand to the Senator.

"Uh, sure." She took it and blushed and they both walked up to the bar. "Those two are going to be really ill tomorrow." She looked back at them noticing that this time, Winry was sitting in Ed's lap. "And, we might need to find them a ROOM!"

"That's my plan."

"Alphonse!"

"Hey, my job is to get those two idiots together and back home. I need to return to Xing!"

"Oh." She sounded upset.

"Um, it's just, I need to finish my studies so I can return home…."

"Al, I understand. It's been so nice to see you,  _finally_. I'll help, if you want."

"That'd be nice." He turned to her after paying the large tab. His heart fluttered as she stared at him. He looked over at their table. It was empty. "We've been ditched."

* * *

Edward couldn't keep his hands off his mechanic as they stumbled all the way back to her automail shop. She flailed around, finally succeeding to pull down the blinds in the shop window and locking the door. Winry was next to him again, and his warm hands found her shoulders. He couldn't stop staring at her, directly into her eyes.

"Do you look at your enemies like that…before you're about to kick their ass?" She slurred. His golden gaze tore right through her soul. She loved it.

"Dun know. Never seen it." He loved the feeling of her soft skin. Before they both knew it, their mouths met somewhere in the middle.

"Ow, Ed, you bit me." Winry scolded as Edward pushed her backwards into the counter.

"Sorry." He found her lips once more, this time without drawing blood.

The two clumsily grasped and felt each other up and somehow, ended up in the recovery room. Ed pinned Winry against the bed and began kissing down her neck. She giggled as his soft lips tickled her sensitive skin. She scooted herself upon the bed and he made himself comfortable standing between her legs, still engrossed in their kisses to notice. His body involuntarily moved forward and she felt  _him_  push up against her most sensitive place and the sensation drove her delirious.

"Ed?"

"Mmmm?" He captured her mouth once more.

"Have you, done this before?"

"Nuh, huh. You?"

"Idiot. I was waiting for you." She purred into his ear and he couldn't stand it any longer. He tried to climb over her while kissing her at the same time. Winry opened her eyes for a second and she saw IT on the counter. "Shit!" She cursed but Ed didn't notice. It was Ashley's medicine. She had forgotten all about it. "Ed!"

"Winry!" He didn't cease his motions.

"Dummy! Stop!" Winry was very strong and managed to pull up one of her legs up and kicked him back, temporarily stunning him into submission.

"What's that for?" He rubbed his stomach.

"The medicine! We were supposed to take Ashley his pain medicine!"

"Fuck, Winry. He's a big guy, he'll be fine!" He stared at her again with lusty eyes.

For a moment, only a moment, she almost lost it again when he stared at her like that. She was sure that this WAS the way he looked at those he was about the fight, the same look he gave the girl he surely wanted to make love to at this moment. Fiercely. However, despite the alcohol, she summoned her sanity, unfortunately for the both of them. "EDWARD ELRIC!" This stupefied the drunken alchemist. He knew what was next.

WHACK!

"Jush where did you get that  _wrench_?" He slurred and rubbed his head.

"Ed! It will only take a second, let's go!" She grabbed his arm as she tried to rush out of the recovery room, picking up the medicine in her free hand. She felt resistance in her 'Ed' hand, and found that he was not moving. Looking back Winry discovered the reason: he was out cold. On the floor. Snoring.

"Pussy!" She kicked him in his side and he didn't flinch. "You can't hold your liquor and you thought you could HAVE SEX?" She was beyond frustrated in many ways. She rolled her eyes and let out a satisfied grunt then she left him laying there in his own inebriation. To say she, herself was sober would be a huge lie. She was beyond her limit and she knew it. But she had to get this medicine to her patient. Whatever the costs, she'd get it there.

* * *

His head felt like a boulder and his mouth felt like the desert. As soon as his eyes opened and focused, well after her wiped the crust off of them so he could open them, he realized he was not in his bed. He was on his stomach on a cold (thank god) tiled floor, staring into a small puddle of his own drool. He groaned as he painfully drug his body to a sitting position. "Shit." That about summed it up for Edward. He realized he was at the automail shop, in a recovery room and he began to play out the events of the previous night in his head. "Trinkhörner. Fuck." He remembered some of the drinking. He remember MOST of the making out with his mechanic. Speaking of, where was she? "Fuck me running!" Ashley. She left him to take that turd his medicine. He willed his pained body to stand and he swaggered to the doorway. Sun streamed through the cracks in the closed blinds. Suddenly, the door opened and the chipper and smiling face of Ivan came into his blurry view. Ed lunged like a maniac at Winry's apprentice.

"Edward?" Ivan immediately became afraid as the alchemist grabbed him by his collar.

"Where is Ashley Crichton?" He all but screamed.

"Huh?"

"Winry! She went to take him his medicine, LAST NIGHT! WHERE IS HE?"

"T,t,t,table City Hotel….why, Ed?"

"I'm going to KILL that son of a bitch!" He stormed out of the shop, almost shattering the window in the door as it slammed.

Ivan stood there both terrified and stunned. He was in the valley and witnessed the Elrics battle both the impostor Ashley as well as the real Ashely Crichton. Particularly Edward, he knew could put the hurt on a person. He made his way to the shop's telephone and dialed a number he knew by heart.

 _Ring! Ring! Ring!_  The telephone in the upstairs hallway of Senator Crichton's residence would not stop ringing. This seriously perturbed two very sleepy people.

"Julia, your phone is ringing." Alphonse gently nudged the beauty sleeping beside him with mounds of thick luxurious bedding hiding most of her form.

"You owe me, you get it." She whined mischievously.

Al exhaled and extricated himself from the covers. She was right, his performance,  _his first,_ should have been more spectacular, but impromptu as it was, they agreed a second chance was in order. He strode into the hallway wearing only blue pajama bottoms, blue bottoms with a black kitty design. He snatched the phone. "Hello, Crichton residence."

"This is Ivan, who is this?"

"Alphonse Elric."

"Praise be. Alphonse, your brother is fixin' to kill Ashley Crichton. You better get to the Table City Hotel!"

"What?"

"Miss Winry…."

"Damn." Al knew he better get there quickly. "Ivan, I'll be there!" He ran back into the room, Julia was sitting up in bed wearing Al's kitty pajama top.

"What's the matter?"

"My idiot brother is going to go kill your idiot brother. Probably over Winry." He started dressing. "We have to go stop him before he starts an international incident or something."

"I'm coming too." She jumped out of bed and started getting dressed as well. "I don't care if Ashley  _wants_ to see me yet or not!"

* * *

 

The first thing Edward noticed as he rounded the corner to Ashley's room in the hotel was the horrible smell. Vomit. Though there was none on the floor, it was evident that someone had retched in the hallway recently, most likely Winry. He knocked forcefully on the wooden door and it opened, unlocked. Taking this as an invitation, he stormed into the room expecting a battle. Nothing. No one accosted him. No one yelled. There was no one there. He heard the rustling of window sheers in the next room and he turned to enter. The front wall of the large bedroom was covered in windows, all open letting in the cool morning wind and making the draperies billow and sway. His eye roamed the room and fell upon the enormous bed. Piles and piles of fabric lay scattered in large lumps on the mattress. Edward then realized that the he was not alone in the room. He spied a tanned calf, and trailed up to the thigh and hip of a person snoozing lazily engulfed in the mounds of soft covers. Finally, his amber eyes rested upon the swell of a curvaceous hip - he didn't fail to miss the very unmistakable wrench tattoo of one Winry Rockbell.


	6. Four Steel Circles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The faster he ran, the slower it would take for the hurt to catch up with him.

Edward couldn't utter a word. Not one swear. Not one curse. There she was, wrapped up in _his_ bed sheets and oblivious to his presence in the room. It hurt. The pain hit him hard and he flinched. "God damned emotions," he thought. However, he knew what would make him feel better and it was more important to him than beating Ashley Crichton to death: make his alkahestry/alchemy theory a reality and take his research back to Mustang. Then? Hell, he didn't know what to do after that, and at this moment, he didn't care. Edward just had to get out of this room and out of Table City and fast. The faster he ran, the slower it would take for the hurt to catch up with him. At least, that was the plan. He spun on his real foot and swiftly walked toward the door. He shut it slowly so as not to wake the sleeping girl, then turned around to hear running footsteps.

"Edward!" Alphonse shouted up the stairwell. The elder Elric winched at the volume of his brother's voice, he almost forgot that he was hung over. Almost.

"Hey!" Julia's voice joined in as she and Alphonse make their appearance out of the stairwell.

"Shhhh!" Edward held his hurting head. "Not so loud." He starred down his brother. The fact that Alphonse and Julia's appearance was somewhat disheveled AND that the girl was still wearing his brother's favorite pajama top over a pair of khaki pants did not escape his notice. More pain hit his gut like a gunshot and he thought again to his mechanic in the room behind him. It didn't stop him from speaking out of turn. "Well, well," he said quietly directly at Alphonse. "Looks like I 'm the only one of us who didn't get lucky last night." He stuck his hands in his pockets and brushed past Al's shoulder, knocking it slightly.

"Brother!" Al put his hand on Ed's shoulder and spun him around, the hurt plain as day on the elder's face. "That was crass and lewd."

"What does he mean?" Julia interrupted. She knew Edward was smart enough to know what she and Al had been up to, but she was also very intelligent and knew Winry and her brother were in that room.

"Here, take it Al." Edward had pulled a small velvet box out of his pocket and placed it in his brother's palm. "You're probably in a situation better than me to use it, anyway. It's top quality."

"Ed?" Al rubbed the material of the box, not daring to open it, instead, placing it in his trouser pocket. He knew what it was.

"Go help her. She's probably going to need some assistance getting home." Edward meant Winry. "Ashley's not there." He smiled at Julia, knowing she hadn't seen her brother in three years. The senator's eyes grew large at the implications Ed had made and she ran to the door, finding it open and then into the hotel room. Ed turned his back to them and walked toward the stairwell.

"Edward? Where are you going?" Al knew that Julia was helping Winry, so he had to try to reason with Ed.

"There's something I need to do and you can get back to Xing." He paused a little. "I'll see you back at Julia's house later." Edward then disappeared into the stairwell.

Alphonse stood there stunned. He heard Julia urging him to come into the room. As he turned to do so, he heard the crash of thunder and patter of raindrops. He had failed.

* * *

At first, the heat did not abate when the rains fell on Table City. Rivulets of water trickled through the cobblestone streets and children came out to finally cool off in the shower. Rain wasn't rare at all, the area indeed, had a rainy and dry season with dry being the longer and more severe of the two. The inhabitants reveled in the early coming of the rain, they knew that it would cool their homes and things would finally become clean.

Edward didn't feel very clean at the moment despite the cool water soaking him through. He slowly took the long way back to the automail shop with stern and focused mind. He didn't have the metal available to him to complete his task, but Ivan did. What happened last night, what happened earlier this morning only fueled his desire to complete this task and leave as fast as he came to this hell hole in the valley. He passed some children, running and splashing in the rain and he slowly reached up to the handle of the door.

"Get the hell out of here!" Ivan opened the door and yelled. He held a broom defensively.

"Oi! Ivan, let me in!" Edward wasn't taken no for an answer.

"Did you cause harm to Miss Winry?!" He stared the blond down. "You were furious when you left!"

"She's fine. The only harm caused she caused to herself." He all but whispered bitterly. "She should be around later."

"I called your brother, he and Julia were going to stop you from fighting with Mr. Ashley." Ivan seemed proud of himself.

"There was no fight. I left before he came. Don't worry." He wondered if that would be the truth if that son of a bitch had actually been home when he arrived. "Look, you want me to leave, and I want to leave, but I need your help. I need you to make something for me with your forge."

"If I make this, you will go back to Amestris?"

"I'll be on the first train to Central."

"What do you need me to do?"

"I'll show you, get me some paper and I'll diagram it for you. I also need you to etch the metal, I saw the designs on Julia's leg, I know you can do this."

"Fine. I don't have any big appointments today, let's get started then." He ushered the alchemist into the back of the shop.

* * *

She threw up in the basin again as Julia held her hair back and fell back on the floor in defeat. "I'm so, sorry." Her blue eyes filled with tears. "You know, this is not like me."

"I know." Julia brought her a cool wash cloth. "Do you remember what happened?"

Winry thought to the night before. She last remembered being Edward's arms and liking it very much. She remembered having to take Ashley his medicine too. The mechanic barely made it to the hotel as the world spun around. She stumbled to the third floor room and knocked on the door.

_"Open up, Ashley!" The spinning corridor made her nauseous and she soon feared her strong will wouldn't be enough to keep dinner down. The door slowly came open and her bloodshot blue eyes locked onto Ashley's turquoise ones._

_"Winry? Are you ok?" He opened the door to let her in._

_"Your medicine….." She swayed and he noticed. Winry fell into the doorway and felt a strong arm keeping her from hitting the ground._

_"My medicine can wait, come inside, let me call you a cab back to Julia's house….that is where you stay?" He smelled the strong beer on her breath and knew she was in no condition to travel on her own accord. He wondered where_   _her golden boy was as well._

_"Yeah, thanks." She looked up into his eyes, but neither of them moved. She smiled, a bit giddy being in his strong arms, well his strong arm as she hadn't built his replacement yet. Suddenly, her will lost control to her biology. She retched right on his shiny black shoes._

_His right eye twitched as he held her still with his right arm as the warm vomit oozed into the fabric of his socks. "Damn!" Not sure what to do and not wanting to track the stuff inside, he deftly stepped out of the ruined shoes and helped the girl inside and on the couch. "Please hold it in, just for a minute!" She grunted she would and he pulled off his socks, discarding them in the trash basin. Ashley walked back to the open door and picked up his foul shoes with two pinched fingers and deposited them in the basin too, then pulled the plastic bag up and tied it in a knot. He set the offending items outside and closed the door._

_"I loved those shoes." He said out loud, but realized the girl on the couch was now snoring._

"And I woke up here." Winry sipped on the water Julia had provided.

"Alphonse, give me your jacket, she's got nothing to wear." Julia motioned to Winry, who was clad only in a large man's white tee shirt and her underwear. Al lovingly wrapped his trench coat around the blond and helped her stand.

"Thank you, Al." She smiled as he helped her up. "My shoes!" She found her blue sandals and scooted them on.

"Winry, I have to ask, but you don't have to tell me if you don't want." Julia's tone was serious.

"Yeah?"

"Did something happen between you and my brother?"

"Happen?" Her eyes grew at Julia's implications and she felt Al's body grow taught as he became uncomfortable as well with this line of questioning. "Honestly. I can't remember anything else. Oh." She gasped realizing that anything could have happened. Anything.

"I'm sorry, Julia." Al's voice came softly and worried both girls with its seriousness.

"Why, Al?" Julia responded.

"If Ed doesn't kill your brother… I will." The thought of Ashley taking advantage of Winry, someone practically his sister, boiled rage up from his gut, a rage he didn't know could exist.

* * *

Ashley turned the corner from the cobbler's sporting a brand new, well, new to him, pair of brown shoes. He decided he liked the brown leather and comfy soles better with his khaki pants than black anyway. He also carried a large and ice cold bottle of ginger soda, knowing it would help soothe Winry's hangover stomach. He hoped she had found the glass of water he left on the night table by his bed.

The girl most likely was going to kill him when she woke up. But he couldn't face his sister, not yet. Despite all of his strength and leadership in the Cretan military, the prospect of having to talk to his sister terrified him.

Ashley thought about last night, how he almost called her. He went to the telephone, knowing his sister's house number by heart but never calling her until now. His hand stuck on the receiver and he couldn't bring himself to do this, not yet. "It would be too easy to do this right now, Winry." He rubbed his left shoulder, feeling the metal underneath his white shirt. "But I still need that arm first." He remembered his mission and stealing the mechanic right now was not in the plan. Still, his communications with Creta were strained and he was under tremendous pressure to settle up and get the stars. They threatened to send in the chimeras. They would only get in the way and needlessly massacre people in the process.

"Shit." He chastised himself for taking so long. They surely would send the wolves in and they'd run amuck. That would only complicate things. Complicate them more than they already were.

He strolled to the front desk in the small lobby and rang the bell. The clerk came in from the back and smiled at him and she asked how she could help him.

"Dry cleaning, I dropped it off early this morning, is it ready?" She smiled and went back into the room to retrieve his item and he leaned nonchalantly onto the counter. He'd nurse Winry back to health and get her on her way. He then noticed a movement from the corner of his eye and a golden blur. Ashley turned his head just in time to see Edward's back as he exited the hotel. He slammed the door so hard, it almost shattered the glass. "Hmmmm." The clerk returned with a garment bag and he took it with a smile and began his walk back to this room. He suspected Edward had found Winry in a compromising position and that was the reason for his anger. He didn't expect to meet the wide turquoise eyes of his sister as he came out of the stairwell.

"Ashley?" She couldn't believe it. Three whole years wondering what he was doing, hoping she'd see him so they could talk about the incident in the valley. He winced when she said his name. "Is, is it really you?" Julia couldn't forget the imposter who killed her friends and used their blood to create the last sanguine star, the imposter who stole her brother's face leaving him disfigured and bitter.

"Yes." He'd rather not do this now, not here.

"I think you need to enlighten us on last night, Ashley." A strong male voice came from just inside his doorway, and there stood Alphonse holding a very weak Winry.

"Who are you?" The young man's face seemed familiar, so did his voice, but he couldn't remember him.

"Ashley, this is my friend, Alphonse, Alphonse Elric." She motioned for them all to come inside. "He's Edward's younger brother."

"Ah! The boy in the armor? Well done! Well done!" He seemed genuinely happy. "I see you were able to pay for your sins and you finally got your body back." He walked past them and into the room. "I suppose your brother's arm and leg are flesh and blood as well?" He draped the garment bag on the sofa and sat down on an arm chair in the sitting area.

"Last night, the lovely Winry knocked on my door." He locked eyes with the blonde. "She had had too much to drink. I took care of her."

"Exactly what was the extent of that  _care_?" Julia asked incredulously.

"Didn't you tell them, Winry?"

"I, I, can't remember." She uttered.

"You think something happened?" He was finding this humorous but he didn't want to ruin his relationship with the mechanic, not before his mission was completed. "Nothing happened." He stood and walked over to Winry, who still had Alphonse's strong arms supporting her. Ashley ignored the young man and stared only into the girl's eyes. "On my honor. I only aided you. I did have to put you in one of my shirts, but I did so with my eyes shut." He lied about that part. "I let you sleep in my bed and I made camp here on the sofa." Ashley motioned to the pillow and blankets still there. He picked up the garment bag and handed it to the girl. "You got a little, well, you threw up on your dress AND my shoes. I had this cleaned and went out this morning in my sandals to buy a new pair of shoes." He stood and smiled.

"I'm, I'm very sorry about all this," Winry exited the shelter of Al's arms and sat down with the garment bag in her lap. "I hope you know, Ashley, this is not like me."

"Indeed. What worried me the most is that you were out  _alone_  in that condition. Whatever possessed you to do that?"

"Winry, that really wasn't so smart." Julia interrupted. "Where was Edward? Why did you come here alone?"

"Ed?" She looked annoyed. "Let's just say, Edward can't hold his alcohol either. He was sleeping at the shop and I got it in my head that Ashley needed his pain medicine." She exhaled. "It was stupid."

"Winry." Alphonse sounded worried. "You have to go talk to Edward. He was here."

"What?" Her stomach fell. She was sure Edward had jumped to the same conclusions they all had.

"This is all a simple misunderstanding, I'll talk to him." Ashley moved toward the door.

"I don't think that's such a good idea, Brother, can be  _irrational_  when he is upset and right now, he's really upset with you. Let him cool off for a while." Al motioned for the girls to follow him. "I do think we all need to talk, though."

"I'd like that." Julia looked into her brother's eyes, eyes identical to her own. "Would you come to the house, for dinner, soon?"

"I, I think I can."

"You and I have a lot to discuss. I only want to when you are ready." She smiled, a sad smile that nearly broke Al's heart to see.

* * *

Despite Al and Julia's threats, Winry couldn't just lay down all day. After returning to the house, they made her a light breakfast of warm porridge and a big glass of ice water. She ate a few bites of the food, but really appreciated the water, drinking the whole glass. She showered and immediately felt better getting into clean clothes. Winry was supposed to stay in bed and rest, but instead, she made her way down to the mansion's shop and began constructing Ashley's arm.

Winry decided that she was not going to dwell on what happened, or  _what didn't happen_  last night. She was going to concentrate on constructing the arm and getting Ashley out of Table City. One thing she knew about Edward was his instinct about people and she knew he didn't like Ashley. Despite his insistence that nothing less than noble happened at his hotel last night, she couldn't help but feel a slight bit wary of him. She also knew that at some point in the day or night, Ed would return and she'd have to deal with that. She chuckled thinking how Al wanted to protect her honor and kill Ashley. She'd be eternally grateful to the younger Elric for that sentiment, though she doubted his kind soul would allow his strong body to kill anyone.

No, today she was going to build this arm. Ashley had asked for her to incorporate a weapon in his automail. She didn't like it, but knew how to do it. There was one thing that vexed her: she knew nothing about guns. However, she knew someone who did, someone close and that someone owed her a big favor. She packed up a few necessary items in her leather satchel and she snuck right out of the mansion. She had to leave Table City for a few hours and no one would be the wiser.

* * *

Edward held the shiny metal to the light and realized that Ivan really knew his metalworking. The rivets were barely noticeable and the acid etched array was spot on. He found the part of the disc that unlatched and folded the circle into a half moon shape, then all the way closed until it appeared to be a closed metal fan. It also latched in this position. He set the object down on the work table, next to its three mates, all with different arrays burned into the cold steel. Ed held his hands up and looked upon the circles in his metal palms. Ivan had also helped him make these "gloves". More akin to the metal gauntlets that Major Armstrong wore to help his transmutations, these gloves consisted of a steel plate, expertly molded by Ivan to fit the contours of his palm. Etched on each plate was a specific transmutation circle, a circle that would help him manipulate the  _Dragon's Pulse_  and it would exit out of one of the four steel circles when they were opened. The palm plates were held in place by leather rings that fit comfortably around his four fingers and by a soft leather latch that went around each of his wrists. He considered, someday, it may be worth getting the arrays tattooed on his palms so he wouldn't have to wear this contraption. _"Maybe Winry will introduce me to her tattoo artist."_ He thought, then immediately chastised himself for thinking about her right now. The hurt came back as soon as her face appeared in his mind.

"Are they acceptable?" Ivan inquired.

"You bet. Ivan, they are exactly what I needed." He picked up the metal fans and placed each into four newly made loops on the back of his leather belt. He pulled the sleeves down to cover the gloves as best he could. He had something he needed to do on the western border, a place he needed to be once more and this desolate area would also be a great place to practice using the new items.

"Are you going back now?"

"I'm sorry, not just yet, but I'm leaving Table City for a day or so, have some business to finish up in Creta." He smiled and fetched his wrinkled jacket, still on the floor of the recovery room. "Ivan?"

"Yes?"

"Please look after Winry. Urge her to go home." He sighed, thinking of her hurt him again. "She doesn't belong here and you can run this place just fine."

Before the mechanic could protest or answer, Edward had turned on his real foot and walked outside into the rain once more.


	7. Three Days and Nights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three days and nights. That was how long it took Winry to complete Ashley Crichton's arm...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 9/1/12: A/N: It's killing me writing the chapters leading up to the scene that I envisioned for this story since its inception. :)

 

> **_You don't know how you move me,_ **
> 
> **_deconstruct me and consume me._ **
> 
> **_I'm all used up. I'm out of luck._ **
> 
> **_I am star struck…_ **

[-"Sick of Myself" by Matthew Sweet-](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNfocDNZWY8)

 

The rain normally dampened Winry's spirits, but she willed herself happy on the extremely short train ride to Border City. Once again in Amestris, she exited the train and made her way to the military base, which in reality, consisted of the whole city. She had the forethought of mind to bring her umbrella but the rain relentlessly hammered down, eventually soaking her through. She made it to the main gate and met the gray eyes of a bored young man.

"Hello." I need to see Allen Harris.

"What unit." It should have been a question but the man said it as a statement.

"Um, I'm not sure, he needed maintenance on his automail…"

"Your name?" She could tell the clerk was put off by having to inquire for her.

"Winry Rockbell."

The man took out a roster and picked up the receiver of a telephone. He had a brief conversation and hung up with haste.

"Wait here." He pointed to a bench under the eave of the building. Winry sat on the wet metal, but didn't really care, her shorts were soaked through anyway. She held her red umbrella over her head.

"What the hell?" After several minutes waiting, the voice echoed against the building and suddenly, she was looking up into the cheerful face of Mr. Harris. "Why did you come here in the rain?" He offered her a hand to help her up.

"You told me to look you up any time I was in Border City, well. I'm here!" She smiled.

"Miss Rockbell, you are so lucky I'm off duty or you'd have to wait a few more hours out here." He go her a visitor's badge and ushered her inside the gate. Before she could protest, he took her umbrella and held it for her. They made their way across the compound and into a vague gray building. Once inside, he closed her umbrella and placed it by the door and they tried to dry off. "One minute. Wait here." He disappeared through a doorway and was back in a minute carrying a few large fluffy gray towels. "Stolen from the work out room over there, I thought we could dry off a bit."

"Thanks, Allen." She pulled the towel through her we hair and wrapped it around her shoulders. "Can we talk somewhere?"

"Yeah, the mess hall's over here. Girls…um women aren't allowed in the male barracks, so, it's the only place we can go right now."

"That's fine, I could use a cup of coffee, if it's alright with you." They walked into the cafeteria, only a handful of men and a few women sat in the large room. Lunch rush was over hours ago and dinner had not yet begun. They found a table by the window and sat.

"Coffee flows freely here. I'll get us some. Sugar, cream?" He stood to leave.

"Black, straight up." She smirked.

"My kind of gal." He got them both a cup of coffee and joined her at the seats. "So, what brings you to Border city, did you just miss me?" He blushed through his mocha-colored skin. He couldn't believe he said that out loud.

"I wish this was a social, call, Allen, but I need your help."

"Oh, darn." He exhaled. "What on earth can a lowly dog of the military do for the world's best automail mechanic?"

"You can help me the best way a soldier can…I need to know everything you know about firearms, specifically handguns. Do you have one I can take apart?"

"W,what?"

"You know, you have to have a military issued gun, I need to know how those things work and I don't have time to scour the library. Besides, I'm hand's on, myself….I just need to see yours…" She grabbed at the holster he had at the back of this belt. He jittered out of her way.

"Winry!" He scooted down the bench. "You could get shot for trying to grab and enlisted man's weapon." He started to sweat. "Explain just why you want to see my gun?"

"I am incorporating a hand gun into a new automail design and I need a reference! I don't have anyone else I can go to right now to study this. C'mon, Allen, I saved your life on that train! You'd have dehydrated, shriveled up and DIED had I not bought you that soda!" She laid it on pretty thick and didn't forget to bat her eyelashes.

"Shhhhh!" He leaned in close. "Listen. I'll let you LOOK at my handgun, I'll answer questions, let you take it apart IF you can put it back undamaged…."

"That'll be no problem, I'm an expert!" She shoved her thumb into her chest.

"But…I need a favor from you." He smirked and slapped his hand on the table. When he removed it, a small metal object remained.

"A toe?" There was no mistaking the steel gleam of an automail toe, a big toe at that.

"Don't ask." He shrugged. "Let me just say, I lost a bet and now it's broke. Can you fix it? I wobble when I walk and the military's mechanic is terrible!"

"I can try." She picked up the toe and examined it. "If you promise NEVER to tell Mr. Dominic that I was the one to work on it….he's pretty possessive of his work. You'll let me see your gun?"

"Yeah, if you'll fix this for me." He extended his hand to shake hers. "Deal?"

"Deal!" Before he had time to complain, Winry had his shoe and sock off and was examining where the toe would fit into his automail foot. Allen nearly fell off the bench. "Aw, this is easy, I just need to tighten the bolt, I have a tool in my bag." She started fiddling with the toe as the young man tried not to fall off his seat.

"I have a confession, Miss Winry." He was sweating.

"Hmmm?" She now had a teeny screwdriver and was manipulating a bolt inside the toe joint.

"I've met the Fullmetal Alchemist before." He didn't look happy.

"Ed?"

"Yeah, when I was stationed in North City. He clocked me for calling him short."

"Sounds like him. Did you get hurt?"

"Nah, just knocked out cold. We were sent to arrest him…it was before the Promised Day incident. He was a fugitive."

"Serves you right." She barely heard him as she concentrated on fixing his foot.

 

* * *

 

Edward didn't go back to Julia's house. He merely walked out of the automail shop and onto a train heading West. After a two hour ride, he got out at a remote station. He felt immediately better seeing familiar surroundings: tumbleweeds and dry desert as far as you could see. He followed due west from the station, knowing he had about an hour walk to the small town of Tribute. He didn't think he'd be so thirsty on the way.

He left the rainy weather with Table City and now Edward roamed the desert with the sun high and the air dry as a bone. He felt his leg port start to heat up against flesh and bone. This was not good. Not good at all. Up ahead, the hot ground wavered and undulated in a mirage but there were some faint squiggles within this he was sure were real buildings.

"Just a bit further." He muttered as he pushed forward.

Much to his joy, those  _were_  buildings. He had reached Tribute at last. Looking around the small conclave of structures, Ed scanned for his destination. Upon finding it, he mustered the last of his strength and willpower to move and walked up to a large porch. The building was constructed of adobe clay and he knew that inside was cool and welcoming. He raised his hand and knocked on the thick wooden door. After a minute, the latch creaked and the door opened.

"Ah, Master Edward, you said you'd come back to us." An old man, a little taller than Edward, balding and wearing a loose brown tunic stood there smiling at the alchemist. "Praise God, you have returned." He opened the door wide and then opened his arms to welcome the young man inside.

"It wasn't God who sent me, Father, I decided to come back." He smirked, loving to enter ecclesiastical discussions with this man hoping to break his religious resolve. Instead, more often than not, Father Moore bested him in this area.

"Ah, but I'm sure it was  _God_  who put that thought into your head!" He moved aside so that Edward could enter.

"That's always a ridiculous argument old man!" He drug his body into the large room and exhaled deeply as the temperature of the room was a good twenty degrees cooler than outside.

"We've prayed for you, young Edward." He ushered him to a seating area.

"I told you last time, don't pray for me, I'd rather you bake me cookies." Ed plopped down on a hard wooden chair.

"All the same, the children have missed you and your antics." The priest sat next to him.

"Did I help any of them, last time?" Ed was genuinely concerned.

"Oh, yes. The ones you treated have almost completely recovered. But there's always illness here." He looked sad. "They keep showing up with the same symptoms. Especially when word leaked out that the others were healed. Many sick showed up hoping for the same. Do you think you can work your miracles once more?"

"There's no miracles, just sort of alchemy."

"You don't seem so sure… _sort of alchemy_  huh?"

"Well, I can't perform alchemy anymore, so what I'm doing, what I can do now…I'm not really sure what to call it."

"How about God's miracles?" He loved goading the boy on this way.

"Ah! Quit the religious crap!" He slunk down. "Do you think you could spare some water?"

"Oh course, Edward, my son. Follow me, let's get you refreshed. You'll be tired again by the end of the day…when you are done. Just as the last time."

"Thanks, Father." Ed got up and followed the priest. "This time, I don't mind." Despite traveling this far away from Table City, that damned pain caught up with Edward. He actually relished the draining agony using this new ability would bring him today. That pain would surely drown out the old one. Surely.

"It's as if you don't care about your own suffering…just like the martyr's of old…" His voice trailed off as the two exited the room.

 

* * *

 

"You and I are going to talk about this, whether you like it or not." Alphonse paced the plush red carpet of Julia's room. He couldn't believe they had fell into this again. Al knew she was moody over just seeing and leaving her brother again as well as whatever the hell was going on with Ed and Winry. Not to mention the pressure she was under about Amestris taking over Milos.

"Al." She fell back on her pillow and pulled up the sheets around her naked body. "Why does it have to be a thing to talk about." She rolled on her side to see him. "We are both the same age, we both like each other and we both are on our own." She sighed. "It just makes sense we, you know, comfort each other."

"Comfort?" He smiled at that description of sex. Yes, it was comforting. He didn't deny that he welcomed the sensations it caused his body. Alphonse actually sought out as many new sensations as possible since getting his body back. He remembered the first was eating. Winry and Ed couldn't get enough food into his frail, emaciated form. Oh, and Winry's cooking was wonderful, especially all the apple pie she made him when he returned. Next it was sleeping. Having not slept for five years makes a boy itch to stay in bed for a while. He had nightmares at first, but having overcome them, his dreams became incredible and he sought them out as many times as he could. His brother and the mechanic grew frustrated with him for a while when he stayed in bed for days at a time.

Over the three or so years he was flesh and blood again, he yearned to experience as many sensations as possible to make up for all that time trapped in metal. As soon as his body recovered, he even began running with Edward, only Al took it to extremes, longing for that endorphin rush as his body became deplete of glycogen.

Logically, when Julia, a beautiful and soft young woman showed him  _physical_  affection he didn't draw back nor was he ignorant of her advances like Edward would have been. He knew where she was going that night they returned from the pub. He didn't stop her. Al actually wanted to experience this, he wasn't afraid or timid but curious and actually confident. She was right, they both were  _adults_ , they answered to no one and what they wanted to do in the privacy of her home they could. And they did.

"It's just, I really like you, Julia." He sat next to her. She picked at the black kitties on his pajama bottoms.

"Me too, Alphonse."

"I don't want to leave." He got caught up in her blue-green eyes.

"I don't want you to."

"But, I'm not done in Xing." His face contorted to a very sad expression.

"I know. But, if you have to leave, I'll always be here, if you want to return." She raised her hand up to his cheek. "I don't mind, you know, waiting."

His heart broke. Winry had waited for his brother for as long as he could remember. Sure, she had said it was for  _both_  of them she waited, but he knew the truth. That girl tore herself up inside waiting for Edward to get their bodies back and return. He lowered his head. Once they returned, they left again. Alphonse didn't want to cause any girl that pain, anymore.

"You shouldn't wait for me. I'll just hurt you."

"Stupid." She rolled over. "Who said it would HURT me to wait for you? Maybe that's the exciting part? Did you ever think about that?"

"Exciting?" He didn't think of it that way.

"Yeah. I'll have something to look forward to, when all these politics and international dealings are over with. It'll probably take that long, you know." She turned her head back to him. "I'm going to be very busy, myself for a while."

"I didn't think of it like that." He scooted next to her and wrapped his arm around her. Al leaned his chin into her neck and spoke softly into her ear. "If you are fine with whatever this is we have, then I will be too."

"Al?" She rolled over to embrace him, they both stared into each others eyes.

"Will you just  _be_  with me now, while you are here?"

"Yeah, Julia." He was so close, she could feel his warm breath on her face. "I will." He pressed his lips to hers.

 

* * *

 

Three days and nights. That was how long it took Winry to complete Ashley Crichton's arm and construct the mechanisms that would hold his hand gun. She built it in the mansion's shop only leaving to relieve herself. Maria threw fits when she discovered the girl wasn't eating so she regularly brought her trays and trays of tempting goodies which Winry barely touched. Alphonse told the woman that he'd seen the mechanic do this once before when his brother had busted his automail and she pulled three all-nighters in a row to get it finished. The girl was just driven once she had a goal…sort of like Edward in that respect.

Speaking of the Elder Elric, he'd also been gone for three days. Ivan told Winry what Ed had asked, that she go home. Winry told Ivan if he saw Ed, to tell him for her to "go to hell." She wasn't leaving until she was good and ready and she wasn't ready. Ivan told Alphonse that Edward said he'd return soon, he had some business to take care of in the West. Al knew his brother's disappearance could only have to do with him thinking that Winry had been with Ashley that night and Al wished his brother would just come home so they could work this all out.

One rainy morning as Julia and Alphonse enjoyed one of Maria's fine breakfasts, the two were shocked when a rag tag and exhausted automail mechanic plopped herself down at the large wooden table and demanded coffee.

"It's done." She grumbled and took the mug that Maria offered. "My best work since…since…Ed's." She smirked at the memory.

"Honey, you gonna kill yourself." The housekeeper placed a large plate of sausages, eggs and toasted bread in front of the girl. "Please slow a bit and eat."

"Thank you, Maria." Winry picked up a fork and started to devour her food. Now that her mind was off the automail, it was down to business with her own needs.

"I'm happy you've finished it. Maybe you can relax a bit." Julia smiled as she spoke. "Why don't you have him come here to install it. Maria can fix a nice supper." She winked at her housekeeper.

"Doesn't matter to me. Are you ok with him coming here?"

"Yeah, we need to talk and I think he's ready to face me finally." Alphonse placed his hand over Julia's and squeezed.

"That's good." Winry didn't miss the sign of affection that Al gave Julia. It was her first realization that there was something going on between the two.

"Miss Julia, you are going to be late." Maria scolded.

"Right!" Julia wiped her mouth and stood to leave.

"What's going on today?" Al was concerned because she hadn't mentioned anything.

"The Prime Minister, Marshall has called a meeting to finalize our decision to accept or reject the Amestrian offer." She grabbed her leather briefcase that was by the door.

"What will they do?"

"I don't know, Al. But I'm voting yes. We cannot keep going like we are without the protection of Amestris and I don't trust Creta." She closed her eyes. "As much as we fought for our sovereignty, Milos is simply too small, to helpless against these two mightier nations. We have to chose between the lesser of two evils."

"I'm sure you will do what you think is best." He got up to see her to the door.

"Julia!" Winry stopped eating and turned to speak. "If you want to, I'll tell Ashley to come here tonight for his arm. Even if he doesn't want to see you, I know he's been waiting for me to finish it and will come."

"That would be just fine, thank you." She didn't know what she was more nervous about-giving up Table City or talking to her brother.

 

* * *

 

Two rather scruffy looking men exited the train from Creta. Their travel papers passed the inspections and they traveled with no luggage. They made their way to Table City Hotel for a certain room on the third floor. Following them closely was a stout man, more sturdy than fat. He wore an air about him as if he were wearing a military uniform instead of a three piece suit. It was evident to all who noticed the trio that this larger man was the superior and the scruffy one's his subordinates. They waltzed passed the inquisitive desk clerk and climbed the stairs until they came to the room they sought. The leader took his walking cane and tapped the sterling silver wolf's head tip upon the door three times. The door slowly creaked open.

"Colonel Herschel or should I say, Ashley Crichton?" He smirked.

"You knew?" Ashley asked. His heart beat faster knowing his superior stood before him and he knew the truth.

"Always have." He pushed him aside and he and his men stepped inside. The last man slammed the door shut and stood blocking Ashley's escape.

"You gave me total authority here." Ashley knew any sign of weakness would not be tolerated.

"I did, but you are taking too long and it seems you are enjoying the company of Miss Rockbell as well."

"Just using her and gaining her trust. I have a meeting tonight with her and my sister." His eyes stared the man down. "Nothing has changed. It is a benefit she is making me an arm, that's all."

"A benefit?" His voice raised.

"You don't need to worry, go back, everything is going as planned."

"As you planned or as  _we_  planned? Did you know the array is already set up in the valley? Did you know they have been waiting on the alchemist for days?" Anger swelled up.

"Yes."

"Where the hell is he?" His gray eyes burned through the back of Ashley's head with anger.

"There are complications. The alchemist has disappeared. I hope to learn his whereabouts tonight."

"Disappeared? You can't even keep track of ONE single person? Incompetent!" He stood. "That's why these two are going to make sure you do your job!" he motioned to the two men who snarled in return.

"God-damned chimeras." Ashley muttered under his breath as one of the men came toward him cracking his knuckles.


	8. Cookies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You always told me not to waste my prayers on you, that you'd rather me bake you cookies…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 5/10/15 A/N: I had no notes with this chapter to import here. But, I thought it funny, the cookie quote above. My dear atheist husband tells me this all the time.

Despite the anger in her voice and all the yelling, Edward was never more turned on than at this very moment.

"Just promise me! Promise me you'll save the country and get your bodies back!"

"Winry!" How could she make him promise that? This was an insurmountable task, if he failed he'd not only fail Amestris and his friends, but he'd break a promise to her.

"You jerk!" She flailed at him, she didn't know what else to do. Here they were, a rag tag team of ruffians, chimeras, seeming led by a homunculus, and Ed was  _following_. How could they succeed if he didn't promise her?

"Win." To stop her blows, he wrapped her in his arms as she struggled violently. He held tight until she stopped fighting him, only her gulping sobs rang through the dark room. When he decided she'd given up trying to kill him, he took his automail hand and held her face. She closed her eyes and exhaled when the cold steel hit her cheek. She didn't flinch, she was not afraid of his prosthetics, she made them after all. Winry opened her eyes and they immediately locked onto his feral yellow ones.

"Ed?" She choked out his name. He released her with his flesh hand and it moved to her face and wiped away the tears cascading down her left cheek. Before she could sigh at the sentiment, his lips came crashing down on hers.

Her heart skipped and fluttered as if she were dying right there in his arms. She was still angry at him but instead of clobbering him, she focused that anger into the kiss. He took this as an invitation and intensified his actions, both of them moving backward until he had pinned her against the wall. His tongue explored her mouth and her hands found comfortable residence on his rear. He felt like he would explode right there and she wanted him to be closer than he already was. They were delirious for each other.

"Edward?" Her voice sounded sweet and seductive. "Edward?" Wait, that wasn't Winry. "Edward!"

He shot up in bed. Father Moore stood over him, still calling his name.

"Damn, old man!" He rolled over on the cot. "You could have scared me to death!" He really wanted to go back to the dream. Ed really wished that was what had actually happened when Winry surprised him while he sat alone in her room. " _Why did I waste so much time_?" He thought. " _I should have told her then_."

"You told me to wake you after an hour, no matter what." The priest walked over to the rickety wooden bureau, picked up a water pitcher and poured Ed some water. "You are still exhausted. You've been working at this for three days straight. Why don't we call it a day and you can go back to sleep?" He handed the boy the water, Ed took it and then a big sip.

"No, there's still some I haven't reached yet." He finished off the water and realized despite the nap, his head still throbbed. "There just are so many. Did the plant reopen or something?"

"Yes. Three weeks ago." The priest sighed and sat next to Ed. "Those people need the pay and the company doesn't care that the radium is causing the sickness."

"Edward." His tone became very serious. "Why are you doing this to yourself?"

"I just promised myself, I wouldn't let people die if I could help it." It was mostly the truth. He hadn't planned on finding Tribute, he just sort of stumbled on it during his travels. He'd just unraveled the secrets of the  _Dragon's Pulse_  but only managed to heal a few minor cuts and once, a broken finger after he got into a fight. Gradually and as he traveled around, he attempted more complicated  _constructions_  as he came to call them. Ed memorized three anatomy books and two books of known diseases and cures along with an organic chemistry and a scattering of biology books and other _sordid_ publications. One day, he cured a leper that was begging on the side of the road. He told the man he'd never tried this before and it could kill him but the man said that death was a better alternative than his current existence and allowed Edward to complete the construction and the boy successfully repaired the man's dead cell structure and got his body to create antibodies that would kill the leprosy bacteria. Although he couldn't replace the lost flesh, he rid the man of the disease and saved his life.

After that first "healing" he just seemed to find the sick and wounded wherever he traveled and he had to do something. Ed pleaded with those he helped not to mention him and thus far those that did made up a story that he was an old man-a Prophet from the West. His ego swelled at that description but he'd rather not bring any more attention to himself than need be. One thing, though, he wondered just how Mustang knew (as he was just sure he knew) about all this.

On his way to Table City, Edward ended up in Tribute for three months. He did not properly prepare for desert travel and found himself in a very bad way. The old priest took him in after finding him half dead in the desert. Once re-hydrated, Ed discovered that the priest ran an orphanage in which most if not all of the children lost their parents to a strange sickness. This same sickness now threatened the children's lives. As they were terminally ill and with Father Moore's blessing he began to heal them one by one until all of them were restored to perfect health. He found that afterward, the energy needed to sustain such large constructions nearly put him in a coma. He slept for four days and only survived thanks to the priest's constant attention and care.

"Second thought, Father?" He caught the old man as he exited the room. "I need a minute, I'll be right out."

"Take your time, my son, take your time."

He painfully raised his tired body up and wobbled over to the beaten wood bureau. The old building didn't have indoor plumbing, unfortunately, so the bureau also worked as a wash basin. He picked up the large pitcher and poured some tepid water in the dinged up tin washbasin and began splashing it on his face. He took a washrag and wiped down this face and the back of his neck. Edward caught sight of himself in the foggy mirror hanging over the wash area and he didn't like what he saw: his eyes were ringed with dark hollows and his face appeared incredibly gaunt. He couldn't remember when he last stopped to eat, but strangely, he wasn't a bit hungry, in fact, the thought of food actually turned his insides. His hair hadn't been washed in ages and it escaped its braid in scraggly loose strands. He undid the braid and worked his fingers through the dull strands pulling it as best he could back into a high ponytail. Ed placed both hands on the washstand and steadied himself before he went back at it.

"Man, this is more difficult than I thought." He swayed a bit and before he could stop it, he thought of Winry.

The image of her asleep in _Ashley's_ bed ran through his weary brain. He just stood there, scanning her soft skin from the tip of her toe, up her shapely calf and on to the swell of her hip with that damn tattoo. He couldn't help but wonder why she had done it. Why? Another thought hit him like a freight train. She  _was_  very intoxicated that night. What if…what if…it wasn't  _consensual?_  "God damn it!" He cursed himself for the thought never crossing his mind before. She  _couldn't_ have been in any frame of mind to make a sound decision that night. "That bastard!" The intense pain unraveled into ravaging hatred and rage aimed toward Ashley Crichton. He slammed his fists down on the bureau causing a loud bang.

"And I LEFT HER!" He swore at himself. Just like his dad, he left her when she probably most needed him just because  _he_  was hurt. "I need to know, I can't go forward until I do." New determination filled his body with energy renewing it for the work ahead.

"Young Edward?" Father Moore peeped back into the room having been disturbed by the loud bang. "Are you alright?"

"Just fine. Father, get all the sick triaged. I need to finish this today. I'm going back to Table City."

 

* * *

 

"I'm sorry Julia couldn't meet me for dinner tonight." Ashley seemed very apologetic as he sat on a bench in the automail shop while the blonde mechanic readied his new arm for attachment.

"Yeah, she said that she was sure the council wouldn't adjourn until very late and she had to be back at it early tomorrow morning." Winry looked at the man's face and noticed a good shiner growing around his left eye and just getting ready to turn blue. She decided to ask him about it later and inserted the arm into his shoulder port and held it in place while she grabbed a wrench.

"It's been bad?"

"Yes, the council is split on a very important decision." Winry was careful not to divulge too much to Ashley, he was a Cretan soldier. "I'm about ready to connect the nerves. You know this is going to hurt a lot, do you need something to bite on?"

"No, just do it on a three count." His right hand gripped the chair's hand rest tightly.

"Ok." She placed the wrench into position and readied herself to twist the attachment bolt into place. She'd seen grown men fall to the ground in tears after this part of the procedure. Edward always took it like a champ, though. He only cursed or hollered. Winry was really curious what this soldier would do. "One! Two!" She turned the wrench before three. As the nerves in his arm connected to the electronics of the arm the burst of pain traveled directly to his brain and Ashley screamed out something loud and undecipherable. "Three!"

"That. Was. Mean." He breathed heavily between each word as the pain died down.

"I find it best making it quick, like just yanking off a bandage." She smiled and put the wrench back in its case. "So, usually, my customers want to lie down a bit…"

"No. I'm, I'm fine." He panted. "Just give me a minute." He focused his mind on moving the artificial limb. Having already gone through the intense rehabilitation when it was first installed by that butcher in Creta, he knew how to operate the automail. He flexed his fingers and bent the elbow and was very pleased. Moving his arm around, he found it to be exceedingly light and the motion most replicated that of his lost flesh arm. Winry really was an artist and a genius.

"So?" Winry's eyes sparkled as she waited for him to tell her what he thought of the masterpiece of steel and wires attached to his left shoulder.

"It is incredible!" He stood and practiced motions with his new arm and was really pleased. "I've got one thing I need to try." He slapped both of his palms together and a familiar musical ring emanated from them, causing Ivan to look up from his own work across the room. Winry had heard this note many times before, it was the same note that rang out when Edward was about to perform an alchemic transmutation. Ashley slapped his new metal hand down on the adjacent table and it glowed bright blue. As he lifted his hand, the wood of the table raised up and formed the shape of a wooden rose. He plucked it up and handed it to the dumbfounded girl. "For you and your amazing work!"

"A transmutation?" She took the wooden rose, not caring that there now was a small hole in the table. "I thought you'd need a circle?" Ed didn't use a circle, she remembered, and Alphonse didn't use one either…after they both saw the Gate of Truth.

"I guess they told you about it." He smiled. "When Julia used alchemy to save my life, she used the materials she had available to her at the time-her leg and my arm. She recreated my face. While that was happening here, we both traveled to Truth's door, the Gate.

"You passed through it?"

"No, we just  _saw_  it for a split second and she was able to bring us both back. Just the sight of the gate was enough for us, I suppose, to allow us to use alchemy without an array."

"But that means…" She realized that since she came to Table City, Julia had not used alchemy, not once.

"Yes. Julia should be able to do this without a circle too."

"That's, a lot to think about." Her thoughts went to how Ed and Al suffered all those years after actually passing through the gate, let alone just seeing it. "Ashley, I did make it according to your specifications, you know, about a firearm?"

"Yes?"

"Um, do you have your handgun with you? I wasn't quite sure which model you carried, I really should have asked. But, I retrofitted the design to accept various different guns…"

"I do." He reached to the back of his belt where he carried a concealed holster and produced his weapon. He removed the cartridge, engaged the safety and handed it to Winry. "Here."

"Ok." She picked up the heavy steel. It had been years since she held a weapon, since she almost shot Scar. She shook that memory from her head and reached out with her left hand and grabbed Ashley's new arm. "Ok, you open the housing with specific hand movements, you wouldn't naturally  make these movements in your normal day, so you have to consciously think to do this." She manipulated his wrist and fingers and a panel automatically raised on the side of his arm. "You do the same to close." She did the same motions again. "You try."

"Ok, I think I've got it, what next?" He practiced opening and closing the panel, leaving it open.

"You placed the loaded weapon inside." She inserted the gun. "It locks in place. Now, do the movements again to close it and engage it." He followed directions and the gun disappeared behind the panel. "Ok, same movement but with a little difference." She performed the new movement and the barrel rose from a slot and traveled down his wrist and stayed fixed between his thumb and index finger, but it was also secured in his metal hand. "Do this to fire." She showed him the next movement and the gun clicked. "Damn, this is important, you have to disengage the safety…"

She remembered her rainy meeting with Allen Harris and how he stressed to her how important it was to use the gun's safety. He told horror stories about green soldiers shooting themselves in the foot. She teased him that this was really how he lost his.

"Anyway, you have to make this movement to take the safety off or it won't fire." She make him repeat all the actions and how to have the gun travel safely up his arm and back in it's panel. "So, do you feel comfortable with this?"

"It's perfect, Winry, just perfect." He grinned, his mind changing gears. "Winry? Where's Edward?"

"Huh?" She couldn't begin to know why Ashley would ask about him. "I don't know. He left." She looked down. "I never got to clear up that mess about the other night with him."

"I'm very sorry about that. I should have called Julia to come get you. I'm sorry."

"What's done is done." She perked up. "But I know Ed, he'll be back and we'll talk. He always comes back."

"I hope so." He was growing impatient. He need the alchemist or he was through. "Maybe his brother should go look for him?"

"Al? Well, I'm sure he will if he thinks something's wrong but I think Ed's just burning off some steam so Al probably thinks the same. It's just like Edward to blow up and go to the extreme. He's just cooling off right now."

 

* * *

 

Edward writhed in boiling hot agony then threw up in the basin again. Father Moore was there to wipe his face and help him lay back in his cot. The evenings constructions on the rest of the people had taken a terrible toll on the young man's body. Having finished this most recent spasm, his breathing slowed to normal and he relaxed until the next wave of nausea hit.

"Edward, I'm having Sister Manuela make you something we hope will make you feel better." He dipped a wet cloth in some cool water, wrung it and placed it on the boy's forehead. "You and I both know you did way to much today."

"Got to get back." Ed didn't even open his eyes, he was just exhausted.

"There is no way you will be able to leave tonight. I'm not certain you will be up to the travel tomorrow either."

"Got to…get back." As sick as he was, he couldn't fathom laying in this cot ill while that question remained unanswered and he had to ask her, he had to ask.

"Shhhh. Don't think about that now, just rest." The priest patted Ed's shoulder. A knock at the door caused him to turn his head. "There she is. Come in Manuela." An old nun wearing a faded brown habit entered carrying a metal tray.

"Fresh out of the oven, do you think he'll be able to keep them down?" She set the tray on the bureau. "I'll get some milk!"

"No!" Both the priest and Edward shouted.

"No milk, Sister, thank you." The priest smiled at his plucky ward's tenacious aversion to dairy. "Just some cool water, please."

"I'll be right back." She exited.

"What did she bring?" Ed was too weary to open his eyed.

"Well, I wanted to pray for you young Edward, I truly did. It's all I know to do in times like these."

"Silly." Was all he could mutter.

"I know how you feel. Someday, I hope someone changes your mind about that, but until then, I decided to take  _your_ advice this one time." He plucked an object off the tray. "Mmmmm, still warm."

"What is it?"

"You always told me not to waste my prayers on you, that you'd rather me bake you cookies…well, we did." He plunged the cookie into Ed's mouth.

"Ack!" Ed struggled to chew the dry thing. "This tastes like sawdust!"

"It's an old family recipe of Sister Manuela."

"It's got, chewy  _stuff_ in it." Ed complained but still worked on getting the thing down.

"They were made for travelers to carry with them. There's dried fruit, meat, herbs, good things in them. We didn't know what to do for you, but Sister always makes these for the sick and it seems to help for a while. Here, have another." He shoved another into Ed's mouth.

"Terrible." Despite their taste, they strangely DID make him feel better, at least his stomach was settled. Slowly and surely, his energy returned and his headache faded away. Before he knew it, he had eaten the whole tray and was able to sit up and drink the glass of water Sister Manuella brought.

"Sister!"

"Huh?"

"Can you make some more of these for me? I need them  _to go_." A mischievous grin spread wide across Edward's face. He was going back to Table City tonight.

 

* * *

 

"Al?" Winry busied herself by getting dressed for the dinner that finally was going to happen. She bought a pink cotton dress for the occasion, thinking she could wear this little gem again during the day as it was neither flashy or evening wear, but very much her style.

"What is it, Win?" Alphonse emerged from his room wearing a starched white button up shirt, tucked into pleated brown slacks. His face was all ruddy and glowing, evidence he'd shaved recently.

"Will Julia be here on time?" She was worried about the Senator, she had been in negotiations for two days, only coming home to eat and sleep, she had already postponed this dinner with her brother twice because of her duties.

"She's not sure, she wants Ashley to stay late in case she misses dinner. He told me he'd hang out with us in case she can't be here. She doesn't want to wait any longer."

"Ok. I'm just worried about her, worried about everything." Her thoughts returned to the golden-haired young man no one had heard from yet."

"Winry." Al walked across the hall and hugged the blonde. "He's coming home and you two will talk and clear up everything." He stepped back and looked into her blue eyes. "I know brother  _loves_  you too much to just leave like that." He smiled as he noticed the girl's pink blush when he said the "L" word. "Besides, I gave him two days and I'm going to go drag him back."

"You Elrics." She sighed. "Sure are emotional."

"I guess." Al smiled. "Come on, I'm hungry! Maria's cooked a feast." They walked down the steps into the great hall. Ashley Crichton was standing, waiting.

"Good to see you, Ashley." Winry welcomed him.

"Winry." He smiled in return. "Alphonse."

"Good for you to come." Al wasn't quite sure why, but he just didn't like the tone Ashley used to pronounce his name. Something about this man wouldn't let the younger Elric like him, at all.

"I have to leave Table City and return to my post in Creta. It may be my last chance for a while to make amends and talk with Julia."

"She's still in with the council, but she promises to be back tonight if you can wait here." Al was sure he just didn't like Julia's brother.

"I'll wait, this is something we both should have done a long time ago."

"Well, good!" Winry took both men by their arms. "Whatever's being prepared, it smells good and I don't know about you two, but I'm starved!" She drug both of them into the dining room where Maria and her helpers had set the table for dinner.

"Will Miss Julia be here in time?" The housekeeper asked.

"She said she'd try, but to go ahead and start." Alphonse's kind eyes made up for the bad news to the old lady.

"I save her some, she's got important work to do, I know…Ok folks! Lets eat!" She urged the three to sit as trays came in from the kitchen and food was enjoyed by all.

BANG!

A loud explosion rocked the house, causing one of the helpers to fall and Winry almost to lose her seat to the floor.

"So, it begins tonight." Ashley whispered, wiped his mouth and stood."

"What's going on?" Al stood as well as the sound of sirens and smaller explosions rocked the air. Suddenly, one of the outside guards ran into the dinning room to Maria.

"The Council building! It's been bombed!" He turned panicked to the door. "It's on fire!" he ran back outside.

"Julia!" Al yelled. He knew that she was with the others in the building. Only having seen her briefly this morning, he didn't remember if he chanced to kiss her goodbye for the day. Now his heart retched with the though that some harm had come to her during her work. "C'mon, Ashley! We've got to help!" He ran towards the door.

"I'm coming too!" Winry knew her medical training would be needed. Everyone, including Maria ran outside.

The rains hadn't stopped for the bombing and a weak drizzle hit them as soon as they exited the mansion. They ran to the main gate where they could see just how terrifyingly horrible the blast came. The council building was about a forth of a mile from Julia's house, in fact, she often walked. They couldn't see the actual building for the rise of other structures that blocked their view. However, they could  _see_  hot, red flames rising up over the tops of the these buildings, then the ground shook with another percussive wave. The fire brigade's sirens blew at their eardrums as the engine soared past them on the way to try to extinguish the flames.

"Quickly! This way!" Alphonse and some of the soldiers guarding Julia's mansion ran down the street toward the fire. Al, in his terror, failed to keep an eye on Winry.

"Coming!" She wailed and started off toward Al.

"Wait!" Ashley grabbed her by her wrist gently. "I know a short cut!" He pointed to the west.

"Right!" She smiled and yelled toward the others. "This way! Hey!" The sounds of the sirens and their distance kept them from hearing.

"Winry, we'll catch up with them, C'mon!" He tugged at her wrist and she followed him. They ran through curious crowds, trying in vain to see what was going on. Soon, their clothes were soaked and their hair whipped in the wind created from the speed in which they ran. They  _were_  getting closer to the source of the commotion, the council building as the flames and orange-red glow of fire was to their right. However, they came upon the edge of the city, a remote spot in an alleyway. They could see a high fence, keeping those from falling off the edge and perishing in the valley below.

"Wait! Ashley, I think this is a dead end!" For the second time since the explosion, she felt fear rise up in her stomach. Surely they just took a wrong turn, surely.

"No, this is right!" He shucked off his overcoat and reached behind some wooden boxes in the alleyway and pulled something black out and strapped it to his back.

"What?" She knew something wasn't right. She knew something was deadly wrong. She also knew that she was horrifyingly alone save for Ashley Crichton, a man she realized at this very moment, she didn't really know.

 

* * *

 

"Julia!" Alphonse clapped his hands together and placed them on the ground outside the burning structure. He hoped that he could harness the moisture of the rain and in the air and use that to extinguish the flames. A whoosh of wind created by his alchemy flew through the building and some of the fire did go out. He did this several times. This along with the fire wagon's help did put out the fire and all that remained was a ruined shell. "Julia!" He screamed and looked around, desperately trying to find her. Deep in his heart, he knew that something was terribly wrong. It was the same feeling he had that horrible day so many years ago, when he and his brother found their mother collapsed in the kitchen floor. He knew then as he knew now, this was not going to end well. He was about to run inside the structure when a golden flash caught his amber eyes. He turned and there in his way stood Edward.

"Al! It's going to fall! Wait!" He spread his arms out.

"I can fix it!" Al brushed past him and clasped his hands and touched the structure, shoring it so that the rescuers could enter. "Brother!"

"Al, where's Winry?" Al wasn't the only person with an uneasy feeling.

"She, she was right behind us, with Ashely…" He felt his brother wince at Crichton's name. He looked around and saw no sign of their childhood friend. His heart ached for her, but he needed to find Julia as well. He didn't know what to do and evidently the young man's face revealed this inner anguish.

"Go find Julia, Al!"Ed moved out of his way. "I'll bring Winry and that shithead back!" Edward ran back in the direction of Julia's house. He was exhausted still from what he finished in Tribute, but he had to find her, he had to ask her and he didn't care if that jerk was with her or not when he did. He passed an alleyway and heard the  _scream_. He also heard the ping of alchemy and a from the corner of his eye, he saw the familiar blue flash. Edward spun and ran down the alley. The sight that he found nearly killed him. 

"Finally! The Fullmetal Alchemist!" Ashley had his right arm around Winry's neck as she struggled to free herself.

"Crichton! You asshole! Let her go!" He gripped his hands.

"I need your help, Edward!" He smiled and raised his shiny new automail arm. The mechanic tried in vain to get out of his grip with no success.

"Ashley! Stop this!" Winry realized that the soldier was slowing cutting off her oxygen as she felt light headed. Her eyes widened as he raised his arm,  _her_  arm toward Edward and she saw him perform the movements with his hand to disengage the safety and prepare to fire.

"Sorry, love. I need your boyfriend's skills in the Valley!" He fired his weapon, intentionally missing Edward. "Elric! If you want to see her alive, follow me to the Valley!"

"Edward!" Winry lost her battle with consciousness and fell limp in Ashley's arms. He roughly picked her up and held her close with this right arm.

"You bastard!" Ed lunged at them, desperately trying to separate Winry from her captor. He was met with a hit to his jaw from hard cold steel. He flew backward and struck a pile of boxes.

"You don't have much time, Fullmetal. Meet me in the Valley!" Ashley pulled a cord on the back pack he wore and leathery wings expanded from it. He had commandeered a flying pack once used by the militant group his sister used to be affiliated, the black bats. Before Ed could get up, the soldier took the girl and leapt through an enormous hole in the fencing.

"Winry!" Ed wiped the blood from his bruised jaw and ran toward the hole. He helplessly watched her short blonde hair whip in the rain as the soldier flew to the valley floor below.


	9. Pull the Trigger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ed didn't know how he managed the words, but he definitely didn't want her last sight of him, the last memory to be of him like this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 9/22/12 A/N: Relax. Take a deep breath. Trust me when I say, it's going to get bad before it gets better. :)

> **Well, I'm loaded and ready,**   
>  **Calmly holding steady.**   
>  **Looking for a sign to show me when.**   
>  **Well, I'm waiting and willing.**   
>  **The clarity is chilling.**   
>  **But I'm not turning back**   
>  **And neither can you.**
> 
> **[ "Someone to Pull the Trigger" Matthew Sweet ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yHLNf0bJlM&list=RD6yHLNf0bJlM) **

His hands started to bleed after so many minutes of digging into the debris of the council building. Alphonse had already extricated several members of the Milos government, unfortunately, all of them were dead. None of the other rescuers spoke as they moved charred furniture and items destroyed by the blast. He couldn't give up until he found her, until then, he choked back the tears and did the hard work like a man.

"Over here!" A voice yelled from the next room and Al got up to see what was found. "I think I heard something in there!" He pointed to a pile of wood and ash.

"Julia!" Alphonse was afraid to use alchemy for fear that it would harm the structure or the poor souls trapped. He dug only a few feet and came upon a hard steel shell, a barrier made by alchemy. He knew that Julia could do simple alchemy to heal, but that was before she swallowed the last sanguine star three years ago. Now, they both really hadn't had the chance to talk about what she could do. He put his ear to the smooth surface and heard muffled sounds. Al slapped his hands together and placed them on the steel cocoon causing the molecules to spread so that an opening appeared. From the darkness a deathly pale and slender hand emerged. He grasped it and he knew it was her. She was weak, but she was alive. "Someone! Get a stretcher!" Al stroked the small hand reassuringly. "Hold on. Just hold on!"

 

* * *

 

Ashley soared to the bottom of the ravine, to the valley below. The people of Milos had long deserted their former homes for the freedom of the city above. Now, only criminals and transients lived here. He landed carrying Winry and he removed his pack, discarding it on the dirt of the valley floor. He hoisted the girl up in his arms and walked toward the old base of the Milosian rebellion. His superior and those chimeras were waiting for him there. Soon, Edward would come and they'd produce the star at last. It was a shame, really. He did like Winry. The fact that she was kind to the eyes also didn't hurt. He hoped that they'd leave her fate to him and he could protect her. Chances were slim they'd let her live though, but he was determined to fight for that. She really was a good girl.

Julia. Ashley winced at the thought of his sister dying in that explosion. So be it. "She chose her path." He thought. She didn't have to be involved in the government, she could have stayed out of it. Still, it saddened him that she did choose this life and for this, she had to die. "If only things were different." He fingered the necklace around his neck, the silvery-tin scrollwork square with the green enamel stone, the mate to the earring Julia always wore. He sighed, knowing he couldn't  change anything. He only hoped that she didn't suffer.

"Come on, Winry, let's get you inside and wait for Edward."

He soon found himself inside the old rebel base, the cell block. There, sitting at a wooden table were the chimeras in human form and his commanding officer.

"It's about time, Herschel!" He stood to inspect the hostage. "She's the one Fullmetal would open the gate for?"

"I'm certain."

"Good, is he on his way?"

"Yes." He carried Winry into one of the cells and set her down on a bed of warm hay.

"Very pretty." One of the chimeras eyed the girl in the cell, he got up to get a closer look. Ashley closed and locked the bars before he could enter the cell.

"Any harm to her and Fullmetal will not perform the transmutation." He did not move his eyes from the dark ones of the wolf chimera. Ashley could not read minds but it was very easy to see from the sweat pooling on the monster's human face just what he was thinking.

"As long as she is…alive…." He snarled.

"Enough!" The superior stood and paced. "Get your mind on your job, there's plenty of young ladies back home…oh wait, they don't let you out often, do they?" He chuckled. "Leave the hostage be, that is an order." The chimera growled and sat down next to his friend, who also eyed the sleeping girl in a way that Ashley did not like.

"You said the array is set up?" Ashley waited until his commander sat before he followed.

"It is, why don't you inspect it for accuracy?"

"I'd rather wait for Elric." He didn't want to disobey orders, but felt he needed to keep an eye on the wolves who still examined Winry lustfully. Ashley couldn't wait to obtain the star, those two would be the first to die.

"So be it. He's the alchemy genius anyway." The officer hoped to twist the knife with his words. "He'll correct any of your mistakes."

"It took me two years to have this hell hole excavated so that the transmutation circle encompassed the entire city, I doubt there are any mistakes."

"Still, we can't afford it not to work. We need intelligence from above. Soldier!" The man yelled to a group of Cretan soldiers stationed just outside the room. A young officer appeared and saluted. "What's going on above?

"Spies report chaos now. I don't think they've figured it out yet."

"Not good. We need a bloody swath in order for this to work, right Hershel?"

"Yes." Ashley wasn't sure where they were going with this, but he knew that many lives were needed to start the transmutation that would create the philosopher's stone. When the last sanguine star was created by his impostor, the city itself had been used, blood from the dying above flowed into what they thought were "speaking tubes." Instead, they formed a three dimensional transmutation circle under the city and those souls-mostly trapped Amestrian soldiers, were sacrificed into making one tiny stone. He couldn't gain access to the tubes, the Milosians destroyed as many as they could, so, he theorized that death and destruction up above in conjunction with the huge array down below would be enough to do the job once more.

"Don't worry." A chimera spoke. "We planted it as instructed." He hissed and continued staring at the girl in the cell.

 

* * *

 

Edward really hated heights and yet here he stood on the precarious ledge just beyond the hole Ashley made in the fencing. He would do it though,  _for her._ He slapped the metal gauntlets together and placed them on the rocks below his feet. He hoped, no he  _prayed_ that this worked, that his construction-as-his-only-means-of-alchemy worked. Utilizing the  _Dragon's pulse_ , the rocks started to move outward, forming a crude staircase of stone. He sighed with relief, knowing that he didn't have to deconstruct any molecules of soil and rock, just construct them in another arrangement of atoms. Edward didn't waste a moment marveling in this new found ability.  Instead, he ran down the random stairs because his life, his Winry was down on the valley floor and in trouble.

It took him a very long while to make it to the bottom. When he finally set down on the lofty, sooty soil of the dirty valley, he longed to cry out in celebration but knew it was far to soon for that. Not really knowing where to go, he just ran forward toward the dilapidated structures that used to house the people of Milos. Ed soon met a group of soldiers, Cretan soldiers as evident from their uniforms. He startled them but they diligently took him into custody, thankfully without beating on him, much. He smirked when they failed to remove the four small metal fans secured along his back and safely under his trench coat, nor did they wrangle off his gauntlets. On second thought, maybe they were under orders to allow him to use alchemy. "Boy, they'll be sorry when they find out I can't do that anymore." He thought as they drug him deeper and deeper into the bowels of the underground.

Finally, his captors took him into an enormous cavern, lit with strange bio-luminescence he could only imagine belonged to some sort of insects covering the ceilings. Everything appeared glowing green, everything except the blood red lines scrawled on the floor. Edward couldn't miss the enormous alchemy array and even though he could only see a fraction of it since most of the lines traveled into tunnels, he recognized it immediately as very similar to the one Father tried to use to turn the souls in Amestris into a philosopher's stone.

"Are you all FUCKING NUTS?!" He screamed to the solders around him who ignored his shouts. "Ashley Crichton! Do you hear me? I know you are here!" He looked around, scanning the room for the asshole who kidnapped Winry. Not seeing him, Edward continued his rant. "Do you know what this will do? Are you seriously going to sacrifice the people above for a stupid stone?!" The chilly voice that answered came from directly behind him.

"No, Edward. You will." Ashley stood boldly and smiled.

 

* * *

 

She saved four. Only four remained of the Milosian government, in addition to Senator Crichton. Prime Minister Marshall escaped with cuts and bruises and the other three had various injuries, none of them life threatening. Julia, however, was not so lucky. Alphonse ran his hand through his hair and got up to pace the waiting room of the hospital, the place still in chaos from the bombing. He caught sight of a doctor walking briskly out of the room they had Julia in and he quickly grabbed his elbow making him give him information. "I need to know!" He pleaded. The man gave in.

He told Al that Julia had inhaled hot air and smoke, this had damaged her lungs, resulting in difficulty breathing. She didn't escape the blast either, a large portion of the left side of her body was burned severely, so severely the physician didn't know she'd survive just that injury. To make it worse, she'd lost her left eye and hand and they weren't certain she'd be able to keep her left leg. In her haste to create a barrier with alchemy, she made a barrier of steel to surround them while the building burned. Her left side was closest to the hot metal and caused most of the horrifying damage. The doctor sighed, tired after the hours spent stabilizing the girl and he and Al both knew it was probably to no avail, her injuries were far to serious.

"I'm sorry, young man. I truly am. But I don't think the injuries she sustained are conducive with life." He patted the back of Al's shoulder. "We've made her comfortable, it's all we can do right now." He pointed toward the door. "You can go in if you like. Just, be prepared."

Al held back the tears he knew he'd let fall in private. Tears would not help Julia now, so he wouldn't cry. He thanked the doctor, but those words stuck in his brain like a knife:  _not conducive with life_. He knew that meant she would die. He searched his head for alchemical answers but he had only just began to understand the medical uses of alkahestry and he knew he could harm her if he did it wrong. Still, if she were going to die anyway, he might as well try. Alphonse slowly opened the door and walked in.

Julia didn't look as horrifyingly bad as the doctor described, mostly because she was lying in a bed with her left side facing away from him. Her face and neck were covered with bandages, only her beautiful single turquoise eye remained uncovered and fixed on him as he walked slowly to her bedside and sat down.

"I'm so sorry, Julia, I'm sorry I didn't get there to save you." He took her right hand in his, he noticed how cold her skin felt. She grunted angrily back at him and he took this as "It's not your fault, idiot."

"You can't talk, can you?" He looked into her eye and noticed that her hair, not covered with a bandage was cropped short now. "Listen, blink once for yes, two for no." He gently stroked her hand. "Do you know how…" His voice caught before he could continue. "how badly injured you are?"

One blink.

"You are burned, pretty bad. Did the doctor's tell you anything?

Two blinks.

He sighed, not wanting to be the one, but knowing he had to be. "You're dying." He couldn't stop the single stream of tears falling from his eyes at this point, but wiped them away with his left hand hoping she didn't notice the catch in his voice. "I, I might be able to help, but I might make it worse too. Will you let me try?"

Two blinks. She was in pain, she knew she had little time left but one thing she didn't want was for her death to be hastened by Al trying to help her and have him live with that guilt for the rest of his life. No, she would fight as long as she could and if that didn't work, she'd join her parents.

"What? Please let me try!"

Two blinks.

"Then, let me get Brother! He's figured out how to use alchemy to heal, I know he can help!"

Before she could answer, the door burst open. Maria and Ivan stormed inside.

"It was Amestris!" Ivan shouted. "They found a bloodied Amestrian soldier's uniform in the building. Marshall is meeting with Fuhrer Grumman now." He was out of breath. "The militia is organizing, they are preparing to attack Border City."

"It will be a massacre." Al said softly, hoping Julia didn't hear but knowing she did. "They'll use this opportunity to take Milos." He shook his head, hating this violence and what it did to Julia.

"Mister Alphonse, what should we do? Where should we go to be safe?" Maria wrung her hands.

"Ivan, you need to get your family someplace safe. Do you have a basement?" The mechanic nodded and motioned to Maria to join him.

"Julia!" Maria ran to the Senator and gentle kissed the soft and perfect skin on the right side of her face. "I will stay with you!" She held her hand.

Blink. Blink.

"She says, no. She wants you to go with Ivan and be safe, Maria." Al didn't miss Julia's only means of communication.

"Julia." Maria let her tears fall freely and set soft kisses, kisses of a mother, onto the girls cheek once more. "I'm honored to know you. I love you, dear." Ivan hugged her and took her place before the girl.

"Miss Julia, please, please get well." He took off his cap and twisted it nervously in his hands as he spoke. "I can't thank you enough for helping me and bringing Miss Winry here…I, I…goodbye, Miss Julia." he turned to leave before anyone could see his tears. He pulled the reluctant Maria out of the room with him.

"Get down, lock yourselves in until this blows over!" Alphonse yelled as they retreated. He was glad they were getting somewhere safe and he knew he should probably do the same. Not only was he NOT going to leave Julia's side, but there was the problem with his brother and Winry. He had no idea where the two could be at this moment.

 

* * *

 

"Damn it!" Allen Harris cursed under his breath as the men in his barracks ran frantically around getting ready for battle.

"What's the matter?" A fellow soldier stopped to ask.

"I just found out, they're shipping me to Briggs in two months!" He crumpled up the paper orders in his hand and sighed.

"Shit. That's too bad. I hear it's cold there. But aren't you from North City? The cold shouldn't be a problem to you."

"That's not it." He palmed his face. "I thought I'd be here much longer."

"So?"

"I threw all my wool blues over the cliff."

"Harris? All of them?"

"Yeah, all my winter uniforms."

"Sorry." He slapped his friend on the back. "You're fucked." He ran off to get ready for the fight.

"Yeah." It was going to be hard to explain this.

 

* * *

 

"It took you long enough to get here.   We can't start without you, you know." Ashley moved aside and behind him stood Winry. She was startled but her eyes grew large upon seeing Edward.

"Ed!" She ran to him, ignoring the guards that Ashley waved off, letting her pass. She grabbed onto the young man as if he were her only source of light.

"Are you alright? They didn't hurt you?" He sounded so calm, so together.

"I'm fine, I feel stupid for getting myself into this. I should have known better than to trust him. Even his SISTER," she yelled for emphasis, "told me not to trust him!" Her blue eyes glared with anger at Crichton who stood and smirked.

"Winry, I'm sorry too. You're their pawn to make me do something, something terrible." He suddenly remembered the question he wanted to ask her but that would have to wait.  

"What?"

"He's going to help us create a philosopher's stone. No harm will come to either of you."

"Yeah, but the people above, the people NOT harmed by the fighting, their souls are the ingredients for this, you bastard!" Ed ground his teeth in anger.

"Ed? What fighting?" She had no idea what had transpired above. "And, you mean, like the Promised Day?" Her eyes grew wide with terror. She remembered when the countrywide array was activated and her soul was ripped from her body. As long as she lived, she'd never forget the agonizing pain and terror of those few minutes she died in the process of Father's plan. Her worst nightmares always contain that feeling of utter torment and pain and remaining helpless to do anything to stop it.

"Winry, I think they caused the explosion at the council building. More than likely, the Milosians are blaming Amestris…" He took her hands. "And yes, like the Promised Day."

"How could you!" Her fright turned to rage aimed at Crichton. "Julia was in that building!' Ed had to hold her back from assaulting the soldier.

"Oh the emotions of women!" Ashley's superior waltzed into the room, closely followed by the two Chimeras. "You must contain yourself." He smiled at her, his gray eyes emotionless. "I have news, blood has shed above, we are almost ready. Bring in the alchemists!" As he spoke, several people entered the room: A sickly man in a wheelchair and two soldiers, all with assorted automail limbs. They all stood before the outermost line of the array. "Now, Herschel, if you wouldn't mind." He motioned for Ashley to stand in his place. "Mr. Elric, you…over there." Edward responded by laughing.

"You didn't do your homework, Ashley!" His laugh turned maniacal and he doubled over for a minute.

"Ed, this is not funny!" Winry shouted, not understanding this at all.

"He, he," He stood and tried to hold back his chuckles. "He doesn't know, Winry."

"Know what!?" The superior screamed at Crichton who just stared at them all incredulously.

"He doesn't know I can't use alchemy anymore!" Again, a wave of laughter overtook Edward, even when the officer struck him out of frustration, the young man didn't cease.

"He's lying! Just to get out of activating the array!" Ashley growled and moved so quickly no one had a chance to say anything further. He grabbed Winry from behind and activated the weapon in his automail. He stood with the barrel at her head. "You will activate the god damned array Fullmetal Alchemist!" He screamed in emphasis.

"Even if I could, I wouldn't!" Ed glared back. He didn't notice the superior snapping at the chimeras who circled the young man, then grabbed him by each arm. He groaned as they pulled his arms out and forced him in a kneeling position.

"Mr. Elric." The officer paced behind him, Ed starred through his right eye with hatred. "Fullmetal Alchemist, famed Alchemist of the People of Amestris. Why should we believe you can no longer use Alchemy?"  His calmly placed his right hand on a sheathed dagger at his belt.

"Ask Ashley. We both fought the last time I was here. Ask him about by right arm!"

"He lost his right arm and left leg and his brother lost his body-they attempted human transmutation."

"Correct, asshole." Ed grinned. "I still have a metal leg, but check out my right arm!" He had meant for one of the Chimeras to push back his sleeve so his flesh arm was in better view. He didn't count on the officer bringing down his knife into the outstretched arm and whisking the weapon out again. "Ahhhh!" Ed screamed in pain, but quickly recovered. It wasn't the worst pain he'd suffered.

"Hmmmm, he's right." The man backed off as a red stain spread on the fabric of Edward's trench coat.

"See?" Ed panted. "I got my arm back. Ashley's also met my brother. Remember? He's no longer in armor anymore. He got his body back." His feral yellow eyes would tear right through Crichton if that were possible. "Ever wonder what I paid, what my toll was for bringing us both back whole?" He smiled.

"No." Ashley couldn't believe he missed this, his intelligence didn't reveal this one significant fact- the Fullmetal Alchemist was no longer an alchemist at all. But, his mind quickly switched gears. "His brother! His brother saw the gate! He can be the fifth!" He had to redeem himself to his commander.

"Al?" Ed didn't think they'd bring Alphonse into the equation. "Leave him out of this!"

"Your brother, eh?" The man paced in thought behind Ed and the chimeras. "We still have time. Kill the girl, we only need one hostage."

"Keep your hands off her!" Ed struggled but couldn't get out of the chimera's grasp.

"Sir!" Ashley held tight to Winry. "Don't you think he will cooperate more if…"

"Just shoot her, Hershel! Or do you want me to?" He grinned evilly. "Or, just let my chimera friends here have her…"

"Winry." Ashley hoped it wouldn't come to this, having to end her life. But, he rationalized it would be more humane to shoot the girl than to let the chimeras ravage her. "I'm sorry." He pressed the barrel into her temple.

"No!" Ed screamed. "You can't!"  He became desperate.  "Alphonse is my brother, he'll, he'll be crushed if I die, but he, he  _loves_ her!"

"Hmmm?" Ed's words caught the superior's attention.

"Shut up, Ed!" Winry yelled. She didn't know why Edward was lying, she couldn't understand.

"He's loved her since he was a kid! He even has an engagement ring in his right pocket right now!" He couldn't hold back any longer. "Al meant what he told you at Resembool station, he wants to marry you!"

She understood now. Her eyes grew wide with the realization. She knew Ed was telling the truth, only it was about him, not Alphonse. She also knew what he was trying to do. "That jerk!" She thought. She was not going to let him sacrifice himself for her, oh no way.

"Is that so?" the officer drew his knife and stood ominously above Ed, whose arms were still pulled tightly out by the Chimeras. "We'll let  _her_ live, then." He moved his left hand and grabbed Edward's ponytail, pulling his head back and revealing his neck.

"Oh no you don't!" Winry struck Ashley in the groin with all her might, she wrestled with his automail arm and being the creator of said arm, she knew just what to do to put it under her total control. She first thought of shooting the officer before he could hurt Edward, but she knew from this range and having never fired a gun before, she'd most likely strike Ed than the man. Instead, she made a terrible decision but once made, she decided to go with it. She twisted the arm around and maneuvered the gun to her head once more only now SHE was in control of the finger mechanisms, not Ashley. "Edward!"

His head was brought painfully back, but he could still see her shining blue eyes. He saw her mouth the words he had longed to hear. "I love you." And he knew what she was going to do, he knew it and could do nothing to stop her.

She'd said it. She saw him and knew he understood it. That load off her heart, she closed her eyes and pulled the trigger.

Click.

"Winry!" Ashley took this moment to gain control of his arm again and wrestled the strong woman to the ground. She sat there, in shock. "You forgot." He stood and rotated his arm in the shoulder socket. "The safety." He grinned.

"This is hilarious!" The officer laughed and before anyone could find their senses over the little scene that transpired, he drug the knife blade across Edward's throat from ear to ear.

Just like that.

No big ceremony.

No threats.

He just slit Edward's throat.

"Close...close your eyes Winry!" Ed didn't know how he managed the words, but he definitely didn't want her last sight of him, the last memory to be of him like this. The chimeras dropped him, thankfully and his hands immediately went to the wound as he fell face down in an ever growing pool of crimson. He hoped he'd have enough time. Edward heard Winry's screams, but they sort of became drowned out by the thump, thump, thump sound in his ears. The sound, he quickly realized was his own heart beat. Edward grinned and hoped no one would notice the fine blue sparks.

"Only one hostage." The officer bent down and grabbed Ed's ponytail once more, taking the bloodied knife and cutting the hair off just above the tie. He stood and wiped the rest of Edward's blood off the knife with the hair, then tossed it to one of the Chimeras. "Find the other Elric. He should smell similar. Give him this and get him here, quickly!"

The chimera ran off, clutching the wilted strands of golden hair, now flecked with red. He disappeared into the night in search of Alphonse, the sounds of battle wafting down into the valley as he ran, these sounds intertwined with the heart wrenching screams of the mechanic.


	10. My Girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The young man realized a long time ago that this young woman was not a helpless victim...

A terrible yet skewed battle raged on the entrance to Table City. The militia lost ground to the more heavily armed Amestrian forces. Anyone witnessing the confrontation could easily see that the Milosians were outgunned and out manned. Still, three years of peace and practice made those fighters from earlier conflicts wise and warrior-minded. Prime Minister Marshall, angered at having just escaped death and full of sorrow from losing his entire house of representatives would not listen to Fuhrer Grumman or his secretaries. Old Grumman, thinking this would be a cakewalk of a treaty with Milos, came unprepared for the bombing and the outcry that Amestris was responsible for so much loss. His normally cat-like scheming mind quivered for an instant when the accusations flew and he erred in his judgment with Marshall, calling the Milosian foolish. This sent Marshall into a rage-a long overdue rage, a seven hundred years of oppression rage. He stormed out of the proceedings and spat on the ground.

Realizing he took the wrong road with the Prime Minister, Grumman back tracked and did what he had grown accustomed to since the Promised Day-he called in Mustang as well as reinforcements. It would be a long twenty-four hours before they arrived.

"We wanted to do this by negotiations. We assured them self-government under Amestrian rule. Why in hell would WE sacrifice all this hard work to destroy their government?" He scowled behind the reflection of his round glasses. Grumman turned to his secretaries. "Might as well take this opportunity to move forward since they sat on their asses for a week of deliberations." He frowned. "I just hate the fact that terrorists made this decision for us."

The old man raised a pair of binoculars to his glasses and spied as best he could through the darkness, his forces pushing through the gates and entering the city. The troops left a bloody trail as they moved forward, the red liquid seeming to leech into the ground below.

 

* * *

 

"You didn't have to kill him, he was still useful to us." Ashley tried to reason with his superior. "He still had a wealth of alchemical knowledge."

"Don't question me!" He glared. "You, yourself are in a precarious position. Idiot. It's  _your_ fault he's dead. Had you done your research, you would have known he couldn't perform alchemy." Winry stopped crying for a split second and heard this very clearly. Her eyes widened. "Besides, his blood will fuel the reaction." The girl silently made her way over to the young man on the floor.

"Edward?" The mechanic, now at Edward's side, ran her fingers through his now short hair. She knew he wasn't going to answer, he had bled out right in front of her eyes. He lay there, on his belly, still clutching his torn throat, the blood seeping through his fingers. She wondered for a second what the leather straps around each of those pale fingers were, but didn't really care because it wouldn't bring him back. She leaned in and kissed his exposed cheek.  _What's this? Is he warm?_  She thought, but quickly dismissed it, surely she was still hysterical. The girl then stood to face her captors and she knew what she would do, what she had to do for Ed and for Al. Winry looked at her hands, now marred with his blood and she wiped them on the skirt of her pink dress, staining it. She didn't care.

She walked, no, she wobbled leaving red footprints on the floor and moved in a daze toward the Ashley and his commander-they no longer even considered her as they fought verbally.   Their loud voices dissipated into a low murmur in the girl's ears.  Winry didn't even notice the chimera, now in his true wolf form, lurking off to her right side, tracking her. Her vision, blurred by tears so she didn't see him rush toward her until it was too late.

"Be silent!" He growled through sharp teeth and carried her into a side cavern and dangerously out of sight. He threw the helpless girl onto a stack of crates.

"Stop!" She screamed, but after seeing Edward killed, she really didn't have any fight left in her. Almost defeated, Winry just wanted to die, herself.

"Be good! And you may live!" The beast slashed at her dress, tearing the thin straps and leaving terrible claw marks on her skin.

Winry's hand immediately went to secure her top and as she did so, the chimera flipped her body around and jerked her arm behind her back. She didn't feel the pain of her arm breaking, she was too numb for that. She did hear the snap.

"This is it." She thought. "I'll be joining Ed soon." The chimera now tore at her skirt. Then, something within her sparked. Winry was  _almost_  defeated, but not quite. Alphonse was on his way. She realized that it was selfish of her to let herself be killed and for Al not only to discover his brother's dead body, but her own body molested and dead. No. She'd fight. She'd fight not for herself or Ed, but for Al. He was going to need her. He was going to grieve and she'd have to help him-they'd help each other get through this. She couldn't simply let herself be killed, not now. With all her might, she screamed. "Get off me!" She took her left foot and kicked the monster directly in the crotch.

The resulted roar nearly burst her eardrums. The beast picked her up and tossed her aside like a rag doll. She landed on the crates, shattering them. Somehow, the blow didn't result in any more broken limbs, but the old wooden boxes were demolished some into sharp shards of wood. She looked up, blood streaming down her face and saw the chimera launch itself in a rage toward her. Winry knew the thing was not thinking straight, his warped mind twisted with lust and rage. As he flew airborne above her, she took this opportunity to make her move. The girl grabbed one of the longer planks of shredded crate, one with a sharpened spike and she raised it above herself just as the creature came down. She closed her eyes.

"Winry!" Ashley's voice carried through the cavern.

The girl opened her eyes to see the snarling, drooling face of the monster in front of her own. He had impaled himself on the plank and, he was heavy. Suddenly, she felt the weight of the beast off her and there stood Crichton, a look of astonishment upon his face.

"You are something else." He offered her a hand, she smacked it away and stood up holding up the top of her ruined dress.

"I can see why you like this one." His commander sneered. "I've never known of any human but an alchemist killing one of those."  He moved to inspect the chimera's body.  "You better hope this one's companion brings back the brother..."  He stared hard at Crichton but was soon interrupted by a Cretan soldier  

"Sir!"  The young man stopped and saluted.  "Homeland is on the radio, requesting verbal confirmation from you."  

"You better get yourselves ready, _Hershel..._ if the real alchemist fails to show,  _both_ you and this lively lady will face the firing squad.  He turned and followed the other soldier out of the tunnel.

"Winry, here." Ashley took off his newly acquired trench coat and offered it to the girl to protect her modesty. She made no facial response to his superior's threat on her life as the shock of losing Edward still clung to her heart.  She reluctantly took the too large garment and winched, now feeling the pain of the broken arm as it passed it through the sleeve. "Did he hurt you?" He tenderly reached out and examined her right arm. "You've broken your arm, let's get that stabilized." He tried to lead her out.

"Don't touch me!" A spark of pain from her broken bones served to snap her mind back to attention.  She jerked the injured limb from his touch.   "It's your fault Ed is dead. Al's on his way, you are going to be in trouble." Her tone was dead serious.

"I'm sure. He will be very upset. We are counting on that." He continued to lead her back to an area with tables set up. He offered her a seat and she took it both of them, paying no attention to soldiers coming and going into the cavern along with the alchemists waiting for their fifth.

"He may kill you." She really couldn't see Al killing a fly, but she had no idea how Edward's death would affect him.

"He will try." He found some small pieces of wood and made a temporary splint for her broken forearm. Ashley pushed up the large trench coat sleeve and began wrapping strips of cloth around the sticks, immobilizing her arm. "We'll get you a proper dressing when this is over. Actually, once I have the star, I'll heal this for you." He smiled sure of himself, then realized he said too much.

"You aren't going to let Creta have the stone, are you?"

"No, you think I like working for that bastard?"   Ashley spoke softly for Winry's ears alone.  "If you know what is good for you, you'll not say a word." His words were strong, but she didn't take it as threatening.

"I don't think you'll have to worry. Al won't let you make it." He realized this young woman before him, the girl who made his fine new arm, this girl was not a weakling. Winry tried unsuccessfully to sacrifice herself so that Ed would be the sole hostage, she was not afraid to die for someone she loved. She had the heart of a warrior and she should not be dismissed.

"He will." Ashley smiled. "You'll see." His heart felt heavy as he stared into her blue eyes and he cursed himself as he realized he was probably falling in love with her.

 

* * *

 

"Her vitals are stable, that's a good thing." The doctor noted his findings on a clip board and replaced it at the end of the girl's bed. "The problem she is going to have will be with the infections at this point, the lack of skin on her left side will not protect her body from germs you and I can fend off naturally." He adjusted his glasses as he spoke to Alphonse.

"Thank you." Al's eyes were dark with tiredness and lack of sleep.

"Son, you need some rest, yourself. She's going to need you to be strong."

"I know." Al really did know but he was too afraid to let himself doze off, too afraid she'd slip away while he was asleep.

"Good." The physician and nurses left Al alone with Julia. The girl groaned loudly, catching the young man's attention.

"You want me to sleep?"

Blink.

"I can't do that."

Blink.

"Stop arguing with me!"

Blink.

"Julia, you're really persuasive." He smiled and her beautiful eye winked as she smiled under her bandages back at him. "Maybe, I'll just rest here a little." He plopped down in a chair next to her bed and he took her hand gently into his.

Al didn't get any rest. Instead screams coming from the hallway broke into the room as did loud smashes and the sound of breaking glass.

"What?" He shot up and toward the door, peaking outside, the sight that greeted him also terrified him. There on the desk of the nurse's station crawled the wolf chimera, he stood on the body of a slaughtered man, probably a doctor.

"Where is the Elric!" He shouted as terrified people scrambled to get out of his sight.

Al knew he was coming for him and he had to lead him away from Julia at all costs. He turned to her and she saw him. "I've got to lead him away. Be safe!" He shot out of the room and faced the monster.

"I'm right here!" He caught the beast's eye in time for the recognition to click.

"Elric brother!" The chimera leapt from the desk and launched himself toward Alphonse. The young man, although terrified, kept his presence of mind and dashed to the left avoiding a collision. "You're needed down below!"

"Not now!" Al had to lead him out of the hospital and away from all the people…and Julia. He looked left and right and spied a window a the end of the corridor. He took off sprinting toward it. The beast ran after. "Catch me if you can!" Alphonse clapped his hands together and as he made contact with the glass, he deconstructed the atoms and rearranged them into a platform that carried him safely three stories down to the wet cobblestone street below. The height did not even slow down the monster, he didn't hesitate to jump after his quarry. "C'mon, handsome!" Al ran as the rain picked up, drenching his T-shirt and brown slacks. He wished he had the forethought to have at least grabbed his trench coat from Julia's room.

Boom!

The road before him suddenly exploded. An artillery shell launched by Amestrian forces escaped the perimeter of the battle and made a crater in the concrete. Al kept himself from falling in and sidestepped to the right, running down a side street.

"They are coming too close!" He didn't see why the military needed to bomb Table City. Al knew that their manpower alone would be enough to take over with minimal casualties.

"You cannot run faster than me!" The chimera was still on his heels. They both sloshed through puddles and left the machine gun and explosions of battle behind. However, the human tired a lot faster than the alchemically engineers beast. The chimera took this moment to prod him.

"Don't you want to see your brother again?"

"What? Ed?" Al felt the same ping of worry in his belly as when he entered the destroyed council building in search of Julia. He could tell by the tone of the beast's voice that something was wrong, terribly wrong.

"You come with me and you'll see him." He flung an object toward Alphonse. It landed with a plunk in a small puddle.

Al, very close to this object, leaned forward to get a better look. "No." It was his brother's golden hair, sheered off just above the band that kept his ponytail secured. What nauseated him was not the fact that it had been cut - Ed should be thoroughly pissed off but probably alright if was just his hair. What made him almost retch in that rainy alley was the red bloodstains _on_ the hair, the stains now seeping pink into the puddle. His shaky hand trembled as he plucked the hair up, his fingers entwining the strands.

"Take me to him!" His amber eyes shone in the dark, full of hatred, full of rage. Al had enough. He was done with people he loved getting hurt, he was through with playing nice. If Edward or Winry were hurt, someone was going to pay. He decided right then and there, they were going to pay.

The chimera's toothy smile widened and he knew the young man was hooked. He turned and ran just slow enough for the alchemist to be able to keep up as he led him down to the depths of the valley and to the transmutation circle and his brother.

 

* * *

 

It was the kiss that woke sleeping beauty. So, it was a chaste kiss on his cheek, still, it was a kiss. It pained him to hear the chimera take off after her and he lay there like a slug, after all, he had lost too much blood. Despite his brain willing his limbs to move, the body, as they say, was weak. He drifted in and out of consciousness, the most recent lucid moment he joyously heard Ashley and Winry talk about her killing the monster. That was _his_ girl. The young man realized a long time ago that this young woman was not a helpless victim, that she made her own way in this world and could roll with the punches. She sure could throw a few good ones, herself.

He tried to test his body without drawing attention. First, he wiggled his toes within the heavy black boots on his right foot. Next, he clenched his fingers, still laced around his neck. The blood stopped flowing almost as soon as he hit the ground, but it still scared him what the would must look like. Gross. He surely would look like a bad-ass now with the scar from ear to ear. That made him smile, testing the theory that his facial muscles also worked. Now all he had to do was wait and gain his strength. If only he could reach into his right trouser pocket. Damn. If only.

"Winry, you know, we'd make a great team once the star is created." Ashley brought her a warm mug full of tea. She picked it up with her good arm and shakily brought it to her lips, blowing the hot liquid before taking it into her body. The dark haired man could be charming. She set the mug down.

"Forget it. Once this is over, you'll be in jail or dead."

"You don't have faith in me?" He chuckled, undaunted. "Just think. With the star, you could instantly heal your patients, they'd suffer no pain during surgery and minimal blood loss or infection. Just think of all the people you could help."

"Somehow, I don't think you making a star is for the goodwill of the people." She knew he was full of shit, may as well call him on it.

"True, I just want the unlimited power I once had returned." He stared right at her. "Three years ago, Edward robbed me of that. Julia gave me back my face, but I was still just a man, nothing as strong as I once was."

"Just a man?" She slammed her fist on the table. "Ed and Al struggled for YEARS just to become regular men! There's nothing wrong with being JUST A MAN!"

"Ok, let me rephrase that. I wanted to be more than a man, I wanted that power back."

"So, is it worth it? Is it worth your sister and everyone's LIFE?"

"Yes. It is."

"Then you are truly mad." Her eyes narrowed and her lips trembled. "I'll kill you myself, if I have to."

" _I_ have no doubt you will try." His attention was stolen for a moment by shouts of soldiers in the caverns. "He's here!"

"Al!" Winry stood as the chimera raced past her and turned, growling as a shadow followed him out of one of the tunnels. "Alphonse!" Winry ran to meet him, but was stopped by an automail hand grabbing her right wrist.

"Wait." Ashley muttered as the lone figure appeared.

"It's him!" She smiled. He'd make everything better, he'd save them, he had to.

Alphonse came into the large cavern lit by green luminous insects. As his eyes adjusted to the green glow, they scanned the area in front of him. He saw the array scrawled in red, it was huge. His stomach lurched when he realized there was a quiet body to his left. Golden hair, now cut short. Edward. His heart raced, his breathing quickened and he ran to the immobile form, rolling him on his back and cradling him in his arms much like he did the night of the ruined transmutation and Ed lost his limbs. He cradled his older brother in his arms but before he could cry, he felt a weak hand squeeze his wrist. He leaned down so that their heads were touching and no one could see or hear.

"Brother?" Al whispered.

"Yeah."

"What are we going to do?"

"Dunno. Right pants pocket?" Al gently set his brother back down, and quietly reached into Ed's pocket and pulled out three brown cookies.

"I'm sorry." He folded the cookies in Ed's limp hand and he feigned sadness. He knew this was a show, Ed wanted them to believe he was dead and so, Al would play along. He stood, now covered in Ed's blood, to face Ashley, now joined by his superior. Yes, he'd play along, but he doubted they were going to like this game.


	11. Tired of Waiting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wait. That word sunk into her head and started the nuclear reaction akin to Edward returning home with his automail all busted up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 11/18/12 A/N:
> 
> I've realized something. I hate action scenes. I think it's taken me so long to finish this chapter because every time I sat down to write it I just failed, got bored and decided to play solitaire instead. Sill, this is shorter than I wanted and I'm not totally happy with it, but it is what it is. Almost there folks.
> 
> 5/16/15: Thanks to Evil_Little_Dog pointing it out, I've removed my twenty-five or so uses of the word "defiant" in this chapter... I must have had that word on the brain as the only way I could describe the Elrics and Winry in this chapter. Yay to thesaurus.com! (Use it kids!)

The young Elric stood defiantly and surveyed the underground cavern. As far as he could see, an ominous transmutation circle was etched in the dirt floor, some lines disappearing in tunnels and winding throughout the rock. He could tell the circle was huge by the small percentage of the arc he could see. Alphonse knew there was more he could not see and certainly this ugly thing encircled the whole underground below Table City.

He glanced over his shoulder to the lifeless body of his brother lying in a crimson pool. Al knew this was Ed's ruse and he wasn't going to call him on his deception yet, he knew Edward was the trump card and the surprise he might need because the others obviously didn't know he still lived. Winry's face told him this. She hovered far from him and to his right with Ashley Crichton behind her with his automail handgun ready. He grimaced at the sight of the mechanic. Her face, swollen from crying was also spattered with fresh bruises and a steady stream of blood fell down her left cheek from a scalp cut hidden by her blond hair. What angered Alphonse most of all about her condition, the thing that made his even temper boil was that Winry stood there wearing a man's trench coat and the top to her pretty pink dress was shredded and hanging around her waist. She made no attempt to hide her nudity by tying the trench's belt and her cleavage heaved with each of her staggered breaths, her bosom ultimately hidden by the well placed sides of the coat. Winry had been attacked.

Alphonse glared to his left and a stout man and a wolf chimera looked him up and down probably sizing his might. He smirked and thought, " _They have no fucking idea_." He did not disregard the handful of Cretan soldiers that meandered from openings in the rock.

"Winry!" He ignored the others, focusing on the girl's welfare. "Are you hurt?"

"Al!" She couldn't stop her tears, she needed to go to him, to embrace the living Elric brother. A firm hand on her shoulder kept her from running to him.

"Winry. Stop." Ashley warned her and she took it not as a warning of what he would do but what the others might. She hesitated.

"I'm fine, Al! Don't do what they want! It's going to be like the Promised Day!"

"Shut her up!" Ashley's commander yelled.

"I didn't expect this to be easy." Alphonse stared the man down. "Just two things I want to know." He lowered his head, shading his eyes. "Who did this to MY brother? His molten eyes narrowed. "And who planted that BOMB!" He wasn't going to let whoever hurt Julia and Edward escape. Alphonse's logic became twisted with a rage he never knew existed within himself. Not only did he want to hurt them like they hurt his brother and Julia, he wanted to KILL them. He suddenly scared himself with this revelation and took a deep breath. "Was it you?!" He pointed at Ashley's commander.

"I dispatched your brother, yes." He smiled. "Would you rather I had split her throat?" He pointed to Winry. "Just help Ashley and the others activate this array and you and the girl will be freed." He motioned to the other Alchemist taking their places at the edge of the arc.

"You are planning on using the lives of the people and soldiers above to make a philosopher's stone…that's stupid, really stupid."

"You have no choice." The man strode up to Ashley and Winry and grabbed the mechanic by her neck, pulling her against him. "I'll kill your lover," He pulled a handgun from his coat pocket and held it to Winry's temple. "If you don't."

"My lover?" That statement puzzled the young man. True, he LOVED Winry, but he wasn't IN LOVE with her. He wondered just what was going on. He noticed Ed quietly chewing on something from the corner of his eye. "Yeah, lover. You're not going to lay a finger on her!"   His eyes burned with resolve.

"Don't listen to him, Al." The blond wasn't worried about her own life. The remains of her life lay in a pool of blood just beyond the younger Elric brother, so she didn't much care if this mad man took the living, breathing part of herself. "They want to make a stone using people. I'm just one person. Don't do it."

More men with guns filed into the cavern, all aiming at the golden-haired young man just outside of the large curve of the array. Alphonse took note of this, but it only fueled his anger further. He searched the stores of knowledge in his mind for just the alchemy he could use to defeat these men with weapons, disarm Crichton and save both Winry and Edward, not to mention destroying this place so no one could use it ever again. A second of self-doubt flashed in his head because he knew Edward was the genius, having absorbed the knowledge of the gate so many years ago. However, Al wasn't a novice either. He knew just the thing to do- something no other alchemist in Amestris had done and only with the fine tuning of May Chang's help back in Xing did he master. The corners of his mouth curled into a sly grin, one he hoped mimicked his brother's.

"Get over to your spot!" The commander motioned with his gun toward the circle next to where Ashley stood. As he yelled, the other alchemists took their places. The girl in his grip winced as he grabbed her broken right arm to hold her closer.

"I SAID, you are not going to lay a finger on HER!" Alphonse turned his head toward the officer and in a split-second, he clapped his hands together. Instead of slapping them to the ground and transmuting the soil into projectiles or walls, he opened his palms and held his hands out in front of his body. A percussive force discharged from his hands and the waves undulated and traveled toward Winry and the commander. He hoped it would stun them long enough for a pin point blast. Using alchemy, Al just concentrated the molecules of the air itself and then excited them, focusing them in one direction, creating a sonic wave. This large wave succeeded in knocking the mechanic and the officer to the ground. Before either knew what was happening, the young man issued another wave from his left hand, a pin point wave that struck the man's handgun, sending it flying. "Run Winry!"

The mechanic wasted no time, scurrying up and running toward Alphonse, clutching closed the trench coat as she ran. She skidded behind his outstretched arms in time to see the armed gunmen line up in front of their commander as he stood.

"I've never seen THAT sort of alchemy before, have you Crichton?" He slowly walked toward his gun and picked it up.

"No." Ashley answered slowly, not trusting the man's next move. He noticed his commander's eyes follow Winry as she stood fearlessly behind Alphonse. He also wondered where the second chimera was.

"Do you think you can protect her from all of us?" The officer motioned to the line of soldiers flanking the sides of the cavern and raising their weapons. "You'd better take this one last chance and activate that array unless you wish her dead!"

Al took a second to process this threat. He didn't know what Edward was planning or even capable of doing to help right now. He knew he could most likely take out the soldiers but he doubted he could protect Winry from their bullets.

"Don't listen!" Her voice rang as clear as a bell into his left ear. "I can take care of myself, Al. Do not do this."

He turned to see her face, solid with resolve. Winry had no tears in her eyes, they were hard and strong, their ice blue seemed to sting his own amber ones until he had to leave her gaze. He took her head in his hands and pressed his forehead to hers-this was not a romantic gesture but a  _pained_  one as Alphonse tried desperately to figure out a solution so that they all could leave this place unharmed. He inhaled deeply the loamy and mildewy air of the cavern before he spoke softly but loud enough for the officer to hear him clearly.

"If I do this, I want to know one thing." He turned his gaze to Ashley's commander, this time, they picked up the green glow of the insect-light from the ceiling as he stared with hatred at the man who hurt his brother.

"What?"

"Which of you planted that bomb." The corners of his kind mouth turned down in a snarl as he uttered the phrase. It was spoken not as a question.

"I did." The lone wolf chimera growled through his closed jaws and slunk into Al's view. "What of it?"

"Alright." He returned a cold golden glare at the creature, the same thing that taunted him above-ground with Ed's bloodied ponytail, the same creature that sealed Julia's death. He walked slowly away from the shocked mechanic and he stood in his place on the outer edge of the arc next to Ashley.

"Alphonse! No!" Winry pleaded but did not follow him. He didn't respond, but turned his head to look at her with a cold, hard stare she had never seen from the kind soul she knew from childhood. It frightened her.

"Keep quiet, Winry and be still." Ashley commanded and hoped for once in her life, she listened to a man. "Just WAIT this out!" Unfortunately, this was not the one time.

_Wait_. That word sunk into her head and started the nuclear reaction akin to Edward returning home with his automail all busted up. She became enraged. As the men took their places at the array and clasped their hands together in an all too familiar start of an alchemic reaction, she started for them. She didn't know who she'd clobber first, Alphonse or Ashley, but one of them would suffer her rage.

"I refuse to wait any longer you pieces of shit!" She screamed this, gaining the attention of all the men in that cavern, shocked as the obscenities continued to spew from her mouth. "God-damnit! All I fucking do is WAIT! WAIT. Fuckity Wait! I'll piss rocks before I let you do this. Do you hear me?!" She stood there between Alphonse and Ashley, her legs apart and her hands on her hips.  All they could do is gape at her, their mouths down to the floor. No one there had recovered from this shock enough to notice the thin fan-like circle of metal glide across the floor, travel between Winry's legs and slowly stop inside the arc.

"I've had it with her." The commander took aim at the girl's back but before he pulled the trigger, the ground shook and a boom knocked them all to the ground.

A gurgling sound emanated from the center of the metal circle and a bright blue light shone. This light turned to white and to bright yellow, like the sun. Suddenly, bright, molten rock exploded from inside the circle and rose like a red and yellow glowing fountain up toward the ceiling of the cavern. Alphonse took this as his cue to get Winry to safety and he leapt at her, dragging her back out of the reach of the falling lava. One of the other alchemist's wasn't so lucky as a large blob of molten rock fell on him, covering him silently and leaving a grim pile of cooling rock behind. The others started running for cover.

"I told you, you were fucking CRAZY to try to do this!" The loud voice carried through the darkness and into Winry's unbelieving ears. She opened her eyes wide and pushed up, making Al get off her back. They both looked up and into the shit-eating grin of Edward Elric. He stood brazenly facing the soldiers and holding a metal fan in his right hand. There was no mistaking it, his throat had been cut, the blood soaked through his white button up shirt, waist coat and front of his brown trench. However, the wound had been sealed and healed. If anything, the red stain, draping his body from his chin to his chest along with his fiery gold-green eyes and wild short-shorn hair made him look  _menacing_ as gobs of molten rock fell from the lava fountain.

"Edward?" She said his name, but no sound escaped her lips. Winry suddenly lost her voice. How could this be? How could he have lived through that? She couldn't move, she stood there frozen by the image of this man, an audacious statue of gold and red.

"Snap out of it Winry! Take cover!" His words shook her from her malaise and she leapt to the edge of a rock wall. Edward turned to face their enemy, Alphonse soon followed.

"About time you got up, you always did sleep in." Al mocked his short-haired brother.

"Can it, Al." He threw his second disc into a farther section of the array. Edward slapped his metal-gloved palms together and the disc erupted in spewing lava just like the first.

"Stop them!" The commander ordered and soldier lined up and began firing.

"Stand back!" Alphonse manipulated the air again, causing a barrier blast that slowed the bullets to a stop and they fell to the ground mere feet before the brothers.

"Shit!" Ed turned to his little brother. "When the hell did you learn that?" He yelled incredulously. Al just smirked.

Click.

The sound caught the brothers by surprise, the sound of a safety becoming disengaged from a weapon. Alphonse felt the cold steel barrel on the back of his head.

"Forgetting someone?" Ashley held his gun steady at Al.

"Finally, Crichton, you make yourself useful!" The officer started walking toward the trio. "Seems we are down an alchemist, so just kill them, the mission is a failure."

"Oh no you won't!"

The voice came from behind Ashley as a blur and a roundhouse kick knocked him to the floor. Winry stood there once more stealing the attention of the men.

"Stop this! All of you! Stop this fighting, shooting, EVERYTHING!" She was so tired, so tired of being lied to, kidnapped, assaulted. She just wanted to go back to her room and throw herself on the enormous bed and sleep for about three days. Her tirade was cut short by gunshots.

"Duck!" Alphonse dropped to the ground and transmuted walls of earth to shield Edward and Winry. They all scooted together behind the stony structure. They didn't notice Ashley running into a tunnel.

"We're in a pickle, brother." Alphonse pressed his back against the wall as the bullets continued to fly. On the other side of the rocky barrier the soldiers fired their guns. On the their own side of the shield, red-hot lava flowed dangerously close.

"Edward?" Winry still couldn't believe he was there, next to her, alive.

"I'm fine, Winry, I'm fine." Ed smiled, trying to ease the girl's fear. His happy smile slowly turned to a fierce frown. "Oh, Winry." His voice cracked causing Al to take notice. The younger Elric inhaled sharply at the sight: a terrible red stain started to expand on the light brown fabric of Ashley's trench coat just under her left collarbone. She had been shot.


	12. The Amazing Flying Alchemist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Edward, didn't you even question how FAST Alphonse got all the way to Table City from Xing?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 12/26/12: A/N: I hope everyone had a great holiday and Merry Christmas. Soul Mechanics is almost done and that makes me sad because it has been fun to write, save for the action scenes. I took a break this month to spend time with the family but hope to post the few remaining chapters soon.

 "Breda?" The exasperated General smacked his hand against the wall of the communications car in the military train they traveled. "Damn it, Warrant Officer Fuery, the connection's lost AGAIN!" He glared at the young man sitting at a built in desk of wires and connections-state of the art for early twentieth century Amestris.

"I know, I know. Working on it." He changed connections and tapped on the wire to indicate the General try again. Feury exhaled with happiness when Mustang's eyes signaled that he had gotten through to his subordinate at Border City.

"Breda? Report!"

"Grumman's got them in a panic. They've stopped shelling the city center, and have pulled back for now." Heymans Breda's voice came over the receiver along with scratchy static. "The militia's pretty much given up. They're being clobbered."

"I suppose the Fuhrer is happy he's got the city back in Amestrian hands again." Mustang frowned. "Any word on the Elrics?" Following Ed and Al was Breda's first mission, after all. The General figured that Alphonse wasn't having any luck so he sent First Lieutenant Breda in for recognizance.

"Edward disappeared about three days ago. He bought a train ticket to the Cretan interior and no records of his return…Alphonse has gotten caught up in the bombing of the Milotian senate, he last was seen at the city hospital with Senator Crichton."

"Julia?"

"Yes, she was injured. My sources say she's not going to make it. Al was last seen there."

"The Rockbell girl?"

"No information. Her automail shop was thriving before the battle, but none of my sources have seen her since a few days ago when she checked into Border city to see an enlisted man, a Allen Harris…"

"This is not good." Mustang frowned. Was there another young man in the Winry's life now?

"Apparently it was a business visit, she fixed his automail toe."

"Oh?"

"But the military brass here wants her for questioning. Seems that one of Mr. Harris' uniforms was found in the senate building blast, causing the Milotians to attack."

"The plot thickens. These kids just draw trouble to themselves. Breda, keep low until we arrive. Our train will be in Border city by 0700."

"Yes, sir." He hung up.

"Not good news, Sir?" Captain Hawkeye's voice brought the General back from his thoughts.

"I let Winry go right into a war zone. I sent Al there to bring them all back." His eyes narrowed. "Ed's missing. Winry's missing. Alphonse is the only Elric they know the whereabouts of and Julia Crichton has been seriously injured."

"Sir, you only did what you thought best." She followed him out of the communication's car, leaving Kain Feury looking dumbfounded. "The country needs the information that Edward has obtained. THAT is the objective."

"True."

"Once we get there we will be able to ascertain the facts."

"If Edward is alive, he's not going to be very pleased with me."

"Did that ever worry you?"

"No."

"Good. Now, how are we going to spin this Table City takeover? The Fuhrer's going to need some suggestions…you'd come out in great light with him if you offered him a plan."

"I know. That's why he sent for me." The two officers made their way down the isle of seats and found a booth unoccupied and they sat.

"He will retire soon." Riza Hawkeye commented, noticing the deep intake of breath that came from the General seated across from her.

"Not if this little military incident excites him into staying the leader of this country."

"I know my grandfather. He can't keep this up forever. He already favors you, you know." She smiled.

"I know. And…" He trailed off before finishing his sentence.

"General?"

"He wants to see you as the First Lady." His mouth turned into a sly grin.

 

* * *

 

"Winry!" Edward put his hand on the wound and watched with horror as crimson blood flowed around his pale fingers, staining the leather gauntlets dark brown. "Say something!" He hated the sight of her current condition with her face bloodied and the seeping redness on her chest. Ed gulped and pushed back the terrible fear brewing in his stomach, a fear he had not felt since she took charge in Briggs and Baschool, determined no longer act as Kimblee's hostage and then later choosing to pretend to be captured by Scar so they could escape. She wasn't injured back then, but now, she most certainly was hurt and hurt seriously.

"Calm down, Ed, I'm still alive." She huffed and winched as he put pressure on the bullet hole.

"Edward!" Al yelled at his brother. "Hurry up and heal her!" He got closer to them. "I'll send another blast." He stood for a split second and a blast of air hit the soldiers, knocking them down. "C'mon!"

"Right!" Edward gently pulled her to an upright sitting position and readied his hands to place them on the wound. At the last second, he hesitated and their eyes met. She looked at him with understanding and also rattled with pain.

"What are you waiting for? Edward!" Alphonse was getting impatient.

"Ed. It, it's ok." Winry took his hand and kept it from going any closer to her body.  

"I'm sorry…so sorry, Winry." Tears started to well up in his eyes. Now of all times, she totally understood and was trying to be strong for HIM, when here she was, the one needing help.

"EDWARD!" Alphonse angrily turned his brother to meet his glare. "What the hell are you waiting for? She could DIE!"

"Alphonse." Her calm voice meandered into his ears and helped to soothe his anger. "Please, listen." She took a few breaths before finishing. "If he heals me, he'll not be able to help YOU.'

"What?"

"She's right." Edward wiped his eyes with his sleeve.

"It took him hours to recover, after…" She tried to push the memory out of her head, the memory of all the blood as Edward's throat was cut. "He'll be as weak as a kitten, he's barely strong enough to fight now."

"No." Alphonse couldn't believe his ears. He couldn't believe how excruciatingly bull-headed both his brother and surrogate sister were acting at the most terrible of times.

"It's true, Al. I won't be any use to you."

"Alphonse. It's ok." She tried to rationalize with him. "I'll be here and he can fix me up when you all kick their butts." She smiled weakly for emphasis.

"Edward?" Loosing his fight, he turned to his older brother.

"We can't make decisions for Winry any more, that stopped at Briggs." He put his hand on Al's shoulder. "We stopped keeping stuff from her to protect her then, and we learned to trust her abilities too." He cupped her face. "We can't stop doing that now. We have to trust her choices."

"Fine." He stood up and sent another blast. "But I don't like it."

"Winry." Edward took off his trench coat and used his teeth to start a tear, then ripped a long piece off the bottom, folded it and pressed it to her chest. He took her right hand and made her hold it in place. "Can you keep pressure on this? Really press!"

"Yeah."

"I have to put the rest on the exit wound." He leaned her forward into his chest as he peered over her left shoulder to see if the bullet exited or was still lodged inside her body.

"Ok." She shook with pain the movement caused but relished his warm scent as she inhaled. "Is it bad?"

"Ah…" The exiting bullet created a larger wound on her back. He suddenly felt sick to his stomach. "It's fine." He took the rest of his trench, balled it up and pushed it into her back and leaned her against the stone.

"Liar." She smiled. She knew if the trajectory of the bullet kept it straight enough to exit where it did, it had hit something vital and for sure, had shattered her scapula at the very least. She started thinking that if her arm became useless she could always have Granny install automail. Winry then starting thinking lustfully on the newest models made of lightweight and strong new alloys which would be really cool. She didn't realized her face started going blank.

"Winry!" Edward snapped her out of it.

"Sorry, just thinking about automail for myself." She almost giggled.

"That's not funny!" Edward scowled but changed his expression fast and he leaned forward and kissed her lightly. "You'll not need automail, I promise, just hang on, okay?'

"Winry?" Alphonse also got close.

"Go get them, boys." She stared at them both, her childhood friends, her BEST friends. "Don't get killed! And…" They both looked at her to finish her sentence. "Don't take a long time.'

"This won't take long at all." Alphonse's eyes shone with the fire of the lava. Edward had never seen his brother so driven. It made him feel better. "Ed?"

"Right." Edward stared at Winry for a second then they boys leapt from their sanctuary to face the soldiers. "Any plans little brother?" The former alchemist took one of his steel fans from its strap on his belt and with nimble fingers, he spread the fan to a perfectly etched circle.

"Just don't get shot!" Alphonse clasped his hands together then caused an air wave to strike the Cretan soldiers and they all were thrust backward.

Slowly and stealthily moving on the side of all the confusion, the lone wolf chimera stalked his prey. He smelt her blood and it nearly drove him insane with want. The two Elric brothers were busy fending off the strangling Cretan soldiers and the alchemists so he didn't think they'd notice as he slunk behind them. Sure, there were many bleeding bodies, but this one, this one was fresh AND alive. He sensed the heart still beating strong. As soon as his quarry came into his animal sights, the chimera discovered that he could not get totally behind the wounded creature as a pool of lava ebbed closer and closer. He'd have to leap from the side. He couldn't help but growl in anticipation. The sound reverberated through the injured mechanics ears.

"Stay away!" She screamed as she saw the animal slink down, preparing to pounce, her shrill cry catching the attention of the elder brother. Before the animal could attack, a silver circle shot across the floor, beneath the chimera, then an alchemical reaction exploded from the array etched on the circle and enveloped the animal. Winry watched in horror as the wolf chimera's shape contorted and changed and blood exploded from all orifices, then the creature fell to the side, dead.

"Are you ok, Winry?" Ed's bloodied face came into her view as he scooped up the steel circle and folded it back into a fan. The pool of lava slowly overtook the chimera's body and it became engulfed in flames.

"Fine, just that stuff is getting close!" She pointed toward the molten rock moving faster toward her refuge.

"Hang on!" Edward pressed his gantlet-clad hands on the floor beside the girl and the whole area she sat, including the wall she rested against rose high in the air, successfully eluding the flow of red lava.

"Can you turn that off?" She yelled down at the former alchemist.

"Can't, the circle is destroyed, the reaction has to run its course. Don't worry!" And with that he joined his brother in the fight once more.

"Is Winry ok?" Alphonse had successfully held their enemy back and only a handful of soldiers and Ashley's commander remained firing their weapons.

"For now. I took care of the chimera."

"We've almost got them on the run." Alphonse shot a sonic blast of air toward their enemy, knocking them down.

"Let me try something." Edward spread the fan out in his hands into a circle and slid it across the floor where it came to a stop in front of the soldiers.

"I don't understand, the fans." Alphonse scratched her head.

"Can it, Al. It works like May Chang's little throwing knives."

"…Kunai? Why didn't you just use those"

"Shuddup. I couldn't aim them to land correctly in an array." He grunted and slapped his fists to the ground igniting the construction process from his remote position. Rock poured from the small circle until it hit the ceiling. It fanned out, successfully creating a wall that separated the remaining solders from the Elrics. Unfortunately, it also sealed off their only means of escape through the old Milosian base.

"Really?" Al looked at his brother with annoyance.

"What? You were getting tired and look, it stopped them!"

"How the hell are we getting out now?" Alphonse snapped.

"Oh." Edward suddenly realized his error: with the lava continuing to rise and no current means of escape. "Shit. I'm not thinking clearly, Al." He ran his fingers through his bangs. "Ideas?"

"I think so, get behind me and hold on." Alphonse transmuted the ground beneath them and they both rose into the air on a rock bridge that connected with the platform that protected Winry. Ed and Al joined her once more.

"Can't you stop the lava flow?" Al gazed at the still pouring fountain of orange and red that threatened to fill up the cavern.

"No, the circle is destroyed, the reaction has to wear out on its own. Sorry-again, I'm not thinking very well right now."

"Blood loss will distort your logic." Winry piped in a monotone voice. The brothers knew she was just holding on, her own blood loss taking its toll on her small body. "Al, you can get us out of here... I know you can."

"Um, maybe…."

"Maybe my ass." Her voice pitched as she swore. "Edward, didn't you even question how fucking FAST Alphonse got all the way to Table City from Xing?" She growled in pain.

"Come to think of it…"

"Alphonse…" She leered at the young man as he fidgeted nervously. "You know what to do, don't be scared of doing it in front of us."

"She's right." He lowered his head. "I didn't just take a train from Xing to Central…they're not finished with the desert crossing yet…"

"Alphonse?" Ed didn't quite know what his brother was saying.

"Ed, I need raw materials…water would be stronger, but as we have none, I need some crushed rock." As the soldiers below struggled to survive the lava, they no loner fired upon the Elrics.  Alphonse wasn't afraid of them shooting so he began transmuting the wall into tiny rubble, rough stones and dust. "That should be enough." Ed and Winry watched in awe as Al clasped his hands together and agitated the air molecules again. However, this time, instead of a sonic wave, the air picked up the rocky material and carried it in a slow vortex which quickly gained speed and rose until it was above Alphonse's hands. He concentrated the alchemical reaction until the brown material became nothing more than a blur and swirled at a speed so fast it would be capable of doing what he intended: scouring a tunnel through the cave ceiling and to the surface of Table City above.

"Holy fuck, Al!" Ed watched stunned as his little brother grunted and forced the material through the rock of the ceiling. It took a few minutes but a tiny circle of bright morning sunshine came into view above their heads. Al plopped down, tired from his work.

"That doesn't explain his fast travel from Xing. Alphonse?" Winry looked at the brother with hope.

"No. It doesn't. I didn't want anyone to see me do this because I was afraid of what the military would want of me. I would have shown you both, of course, but there never was any time."

"You can get us out of here, can't you?" Edward smirked.

"Yes." Al knelt down and gently picked up the injured mechanic. He winced as this slow movement still caused her to cry out in pain and he felt the wetness of her blood on his chest. "Ed, I'll need you to hold on to my back, we're going straight up."

"Fuck. Al?" Edward did as he was told and wrapped his arms tightly around his brother's waist.

"I'm really tired, but I know I can get us out of here, both of you, just, just hold on tight!" Suddenly, the ground beneath them trembled and seemed to vibrate beneath the younger Elric's feet. He manipulated the air around his shoes creating a lift that carried them up a foot.

"Your feet? You can trans-fucking-mute FROM YOUR FEET?!" Ed screamed as the winded picked up.

"Yes. Dad taught me the basics in Liore, but I couldn't do it while I was in armor…"

"Shit." Edward became a bit jealous of his little brother's abilities but he did remember his father, Van Hohenheim, just stepping forward and causing the reaction that made the earth rise and entrap the homunculus Pride along with Alphonse. "Ok, then, get us out of here!"

In a split second, they rose up through the newly-carved tunnel at breakneck speed. Higher and higher they flew until they were propelled through the opening and into the chilly but clear morning air. Then, as fast as they flew upward, they fell downward, landing with a thud on the cobblestone road. Unfortunately, their escape hole was right before the victorious Amestrian army. Al hit his head upon landing and wiped a smear of red blood from his eye so he could see. Winry lay to his left and his brother was scrambling from where he landed to get to her side.

"Ed, hurry up and heal her!" Al stood to assess their current situation as the surprise of the trio's appearance soon wore off on the faces of the soldiers that surrounded them. "We are not your enemy!" Alphonse raised his hands up over his head to signal he was no threat. "Ed!"

"Winry?" Edward turned the girl from her side and cradled her in his arms. "Winry?" He couldn't help it. the image just popped into his head-the image of his mom unconscious on the kitchen floor right before she died. Winry lay there just as silent, cold and unmoving as his mother and fear welled up in his gut. He shook her gently. "Winry! Wake up!" He couldn't stop the tears as he thought he got to her too late. Ed shook her more fervently. "Al! She won't wake up. Winry!" He held her tightly and wiped the damp hair from her forehead and held her close to his face. "I'm sorry, so sorry. I'm sorry I left you. I'm sorry I couldn't be the man you deserved. I'm sorry you had to come here looking for me." He rocked her gently as the eyes of the soldiers took in this pitiful sight as his tears fell on her pale face and he gently kissed them away. "S,s,s sorry…"

"…idiot." The words came from her lips slowly and barely audible but they were not missed by the golden-haired man holding her. "Stop blubbering…I'm not dead yet." She didn't open her eyes, but she knew he smiled at her, from ear to ear.

"You're amazing." He wiped his eyes with his sleeve one last time and with utmost care, he set her back down on the cold stone road. Gingerly, he reached down and peeled the blood-soaked side of the trench coat from her left chest. He paused. "Uh…um…"

"It's a boob, Ed, you're going to have to see it." She couldn't believe he was becoming shy right at this moment.

"It's just, uh…"

"Remind me to tell you all the times me and Gran saw your PENIS when we were taking care of you! Just do it!"

"Winry?" He never really thought of it before, but when he lost his limbs, he was bedridden for weeks… "Hold on." Edward moved the fabric revealing her perfect breast and the bullet hole above. She had long lost the wadded bandage she held to stop the blood flow, so it still ran red profusely. He placed his steel covered palms on the wound, the cold metal made her jump ever so slightly. Suddenly, a blue glow emanated from his hands and around the wound. "Please work!" He screamed as a redness overtook his vision and his sense of consciousness and awareness ceased.

Winry felt a warm sensation on her chest and it spread throughout her body from the bullet wound, to the cuts and scrapes that covered her and finally in the broken bones of her arm. It almost became too hot to bear, but just as soon as she thought she might cry out because of it, the warmth stopped and she felt absolutely no pain other than a headache and nausea from her loss of blood. She then felt something warm and heavy on her chest, something becoming oppressively heavy. The mechanic opened her eyes but couldn't see anything but golden hair. Edward had collapsed on her. She gathered all her remaining strength and moved him off so she could sit up. As her eyes adjusted to the brightening morning light she could see a crowd of blue surrounding them as Alphonse stood protectively in front of them with his hands behind his head. She couldn't help thinking, "Why are the soldiers gaping at me?" She realized that her left breast was exposed. Winry shrieked and quickly covered it with the trench coat effectively breaking the spell on the men.

"You! Raise your hands!" A lone soldier commanded and Winry complied.

"We are Amestrian!" Alphonse pleaded with them. "My brother," He motioned to the man who was motionless beside the mechanic. "My brother was the Fullmetal Alchemist, we are not part of your fight!"

"Wait a minute!" A different voice carried from the back of the crowd. "Put down your weapons!" This voice carried with it an innate authority that even though some of the men couldn't see the owner of this voice approach, they knew enough to do as he said. The crowd parted and General Mustang appeared with a swish of his black topcoat and billow of his blue uniform underneath. His most trusted subordinate, Riza Hawkeye closely followed with her short blond hair and piercing brown eyes focused on protecting the General. "Alphonse?"

"General Mustang?" Al lowered his hands as his golden eyes met the onyx gaze of the man that would most likely become Fuhrer of Amestris.

"Alphonse Elric. What. Did. You. Just. Do?"

Al knew that Mustang had witnessed his flight and escape and most likely also the construction of the hole in the street. He knew that he'd make him explain his new found talents and that he'd do his best to wrangle him into becoming a weapon for the state as he still tried to manipulate Edward. "Mustang, please." He turned to Winry and his brother. "They both need to go to the hospital. NOW!"

Both Mustang and Hawkeye were taken aback by Al's authoritative tone.

"Very well. We are closest to the Milosian hospital." He motioned to a few soldiers and they returned with two stretchers and hoisted the unconscious Edward onto one and a protesting Winry on the other. "But you and I need to talk, Alphonse."

Al knew this was not over but his mind could not be swayed from his family and from Julia who lay dying in the same hospital. He knew where he had to be right now and not Mustang or the whole fucking Amestrian Army would stop him. "I'll see you at the hospital." And with those last words, he shot up into the air and disappeared leaving everyone there gaping at the sight that just passed their unbelieving eyes: An alchemist who flew.


	13. The Alchemist's Final Sacrifice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Your brother sacrificed his alchemy to bring you back! Now you want to throw it all away?"

The young man stood upon the ledge of the hospital roof and stared five stories down upon the scene unfolding beyond his brown shoes. So many soldiers in blue scurried about to and fro from the hospital but somehow he caught the gleaming golden glow of his brother's short hair in the bright morning sun and he knew they'd be safe. The young alchemist also caught Winry's pale face looking up at him as they carried her into the hospital on a stretcher, her eyes half closed, exhausted. He felt her blue irises focus on his face, but still, he wasn't sure she actually saw him. He WAS sure that Mustang saw him though. The General stopped for a second to consider the younger Elric and then calmly strolled into the building. Al only had a few minutes to do what he had to do, the only thing he could think of to save Julia now that Edward had used the last of his strength to save Winry.

Alphonse took a deep breath and walked to the door leading into the hospital. As he expected, he found it locked. A simple transmutation dissolved the door and he walked through into a dark stairwell. Out of habit, he turned and restored the door, then carried on downward to the hospital until he found his way into a hallway on the fourth floor. There was still much excitement on this ward so no one noticed as he quickly walked toward the stairs on the east side of the building. A label on a door caught his attention, "Janitor's Closet". Finding it unlocked, he opened it and found the two items he hoped would be kept here. Picking them up, he continued his journey to Julia's room.

 

* * *

 

The emergency room chaos almost caused Winry to pass out. She wanted to escape into sleep but all these doctors and nurses hovering around her prevented this.

"I can't find any wounds on this one! Where did this blood come from?" A loud male voice carried across the room, a doctor trying to help Edward.

The mechanic turned her head to see a group of people manipulating Ed's body trying to find the source of the blood that covered his chin, throat and chest. They began cutting off his clothing and inserted a needle into his arm. She was thankful he was not awake for the needle. The medical staff missed the fact that both of them lost blood from horrible wounds that had been sealed closed with alchemy. She had to correct them. "He…needs…a transfusion." Nothing but a quiet squeak escaped her tired lips. She had to speak louder. She screamed his blood type, a fact burned into her brain from that night years ago that she and Granny worked for hours to keep him from dying after he lost his arm and his leg. "TRANSFUSION!" She got their attention.

"There's no wounds on either of them! Who's blood is this?"

Winry struggled against the people working on her. She felt them cut away the fabric of her clothing to better access her wounds, wounds no longer there. They didn't understand and she became frantic.

"Calm down, calm down, Miss!" The nurses around her tried to keep her from injuring herself further until they could understand where she was hurt. But this mechanic was very strong and she was not going to give up.

"TRANSFUSION!" She managed to scream so loudly the doctor's at Edward's side heard her and took notice but still didn't understand. Winry sat up and thrashed about against the hands trying to hold her down.

"Get a sedative!"

The young woman felt the icy cold medicine enter her veins and she silently cursed as she didn't even remember them inserting the IV into her arm. No amount of struggling or cursing was going to work now that the drug effectively made her slump back down on the bed defeated. She turned her head slowly as the people working on her body caused her to move and jerk as they frantically tried to find the source of her sickness, and why her blood pressure kept falling. She fought against the sleep that she felt coming and kept her eyes at the young man in the next bed.

"Blood pressure is still falling!" Ed's doctor shouted.

Winry tried to reach for him, but her arm wouldn't move. Her heart ached as she couldn't get the medical staff to understand. She hoped that they'd figure it out fast. She closed her eyes but her ears were still alert and the next sound brought her hope - that booming voice of authority, the voice of Roy Mustang.

"Can't you idiots see they lost blood! Their wounds were sealed with alchemy!"

Realization hit the hospital staff and they scurried to get the bags of plasma and blood hanging and connected to both patients. There was a long silence as the fluids dripped into Edward and Winry.

"BP is rising for both!"

"I need the doctor in charge!" Mustang growled and soon a white-coat stood before him. "You?"

"Y,yes."

"Are they out of danger?"

"I," He stammered, then looked at both his patients, their vitals were improving. "Yes. They both will need continued transfusions, but as long as their blood pressure continues to rise, they should be out of danger."

"Good." He turned and discarded the doctor as easily as he found him. "Hawkeye!"

"Sir!" Riza waited for the General's instructions.

"Go to Julia's room and wait, I'm going to the roof for Alphonse."

"General, can't that wait?" She wondered why Mustang was so intent on interrogating the young Elric on his new abilities but knew as an alchemist, his thirst for knowledge kept his patience at bay.

"Don't question me!" He wasn't really angry with Riza, he was angry that these stupid Elrics and the Rockbell girl got themselves involved somehow in the Table City takeover and got hurt. He was furious that Alphonse was stupid enough to show the Amestrian military and perhaps the Fuhrer himself that he could fly. He was angry because he couldn't think of a way out, a way he didn't HAVE to force Alphonse into the military now that he became an alchemical human weapon. "I'm sorry," He corrected himself. "Just wait outside Julia's room and I'll meet you there." He ran toward the west staircase.

"Yes sir!"

Suddenly, an exhausted looking nurse ran into the room shouting. All heads turned at once, including Hawkeye's. "Code red! Code red! Multiple burn victims!"

"What's going on?" Riza pulled the lady aside. "Where did these people come from?"

"They said on the radio that they are Cretan soldiers. There's some sort of fire in the old city in the valley, many are burned!" She pulled away from Riza's grasp and ran into the room. Orderlies followed and one by one, they wheeled the other injured, including Edward and Winry out of the emergency room to their admittance rooms.

"Fire in the Valley?" Hawkeye retreated into the hallway as the hospital staff quickly changed up the emergency area, readying the gurneys for victims with severe burns. As she turned to walk toward the west stairwell and toward Julia's floor, she made a mental note to contact the floor nurse to find Ed and Winry's room and to alert the General that Cretan soldiers had something going on the valley.

 

* * *

 

Alphonse came upon the Milosian guards outside Julia's room. Both big men had been unarmed by the Amestrians when the hospital was seized, but both still stood valiantly protecting their senator since the chimera attacked the previous night. Thankfully, they recognized the alchemist as he approached.

"Mr Elric! You are unharmed!" Both men were outside when the wolf chimera raged in the hallway and chased Al from the hospital.

"Yes. I'm fine. Thanks." He walked toward the closed door. "How is Julia?"

"The doctor's said that she is worse. They've inserted a breathing tube. Her organs are shutting down." He didn't hide the sadness in his voice. Julia was well-loved.

"Can I see her?"

"Of course, but she is not awake." They stepped aside and allowed him to enter the room. He closed the door behind.

Finally alone, Alphonse sighed, grateful the two guards didn't notice the items he carried. He walked into the room and turned to a chair next to the bed where the injured senator lay unconscious. He quietly placed the well-used can of black paint and equally well-used paint brush on the chair. The alchemist leaned in and regarded Julia's bandaged face, her single eye closed and peaceful. He stroked the tufts of strawberry blond hair that poked through the bandage around her forehead and leaned in and gave her a soft kiss. Al noticed how cold the pale skin of her exposed forehead was as he retreated and looked upon her again. He knew this was the only choice, the only way to save her. Alphonse walked over to the window and pulled the blinds and drew the curtain enveloping the room in darkness but with just enough light to clearly see what he needed to do.

 

* * *

 

The dream unraveled in her mind in streams of blurry bits and pieces. Edward stood there as Ashley held her, the cold steel Julia's brother's automail weapon pressed to her cheek. Somehow, she gathered her strength and manhandled the arm into her control. One hostage. The officer ordered one of them to die-she or Ed. One hostage only. Could she shoot that son of a bitch from this distance? No, she was sure of it. Edward's face contorted as the chimeras held him down, she couldn't hear from this distance, but she was certain the former alchemist was growling at her to drop the weapon. His golden eyes struck her just as if he used his hand, trying to smack some sense into her thick skull. It was as if he non verbally shouted: "Stupid! Only one hostage means YOU! Put that gun down! I'm the one to die gearhead!" There was another thing. Did he really say this? He just told her, "This is  _man's_ work!" That chauvinistic bastard. Just like when they were kids and he and Al shut her out in an attempt to protect her. How dare he! She'd show him. She'd pull a fast one on HIM! Winry pulled the trigger.

She didn't die, having forgotten to release the safety. Ashley had no intention of shooting her if he had left the safety engaged on his weapon. She was an idiot. Edward grinned that shit-eating grin of his as the blade glided like a warm case knife through the soft butter of his skin. "Close your eyes, Winry!" How dare he demand she not watch! How could she take her eyes off of him as he bled, as he died. He wouldn't deny her of this, no! She couldn't hold him, couldn't embrace him. She could only comfort him with her eyes so she would not look away. Never.

"There, there, honey." The voice wafted into her dream. "You're having a nightmare."

"Huh?" She slowly opened her eyes and looked upon the face of a kind nurse.

"You're having a nightmare."

"Where, where am I?"

"The Miloisan hospital. You've been through the wringer, miss. One of many!"

"Oh, no!" Winry shot up, frantic to find Edward. "Ed?"

"Settle down, that young man is in the bed right over there." She motioned toward the sheer privacy drape that separated Winry's bed from one of the many in that crowded hospital ward. "He's fine, but still asleep." The nurse turned to the empty bag of fluids hanging from a bright steel stand and connected to the mechanic through a thin intravenous tube inserted in the bend of her left arm. "I can remove your IV now, OK?"

"Ah, alright." She wasn't bothered by needles, having inserted many because of her profession. She was anxious to get unhooked from her tether so she could get out of bed and check on Edward.

"All done!" The nurse disposed of the tiny catheter and taped some gauze on Winry's arm. "I have so may other patients, I have to leave. You must rest until the doctor discharges you." She smiled and brushed some stray hairs back from her face and left.

"Ed?"

Of course the mechanic didn't listen to very sound medical advice. She had only one thing on her mind and that was making sure Edward was ok. She tenderly got out of bed and as she went, noting any pains or injuries in her own body. She sighed, thankfully there were none. She was a little sore and tired, but otherwise fine. Winry slowly padded in her bare feet toward the thin dividing cloth and slowly pulled it aside.

More light shown in Edward's small cell than her own. It bounced off his golden hair and into her blue eyes. Winry sat on the edge of the bed and watched him as he slept. She regarded his neck and right where a terrible scar should be was nothing. Nothing but smooth, uncut skin. Just a few odd red flecks in his bangs remained the only evidence of Edward's failed murder. She held his hand, warm and strong and she smiled.

"Wake up already, alchemy freak." She stroked his short blonde hair and smiled. "I need to check on Julia soon."

She didn't notice the dark eyes of a stout soldier burning through his bandages at the couple. No, not at Winry, at Edward Elric.

 

* * *

 

"There! All done." Alphonse stood back to review his handiwork. The white hospital sheet on the floor now had a near-perfect human transmutation array painted on it. "I know it's not dry yet, and, it's not as neatly done with this old brush…" He turned to Julia and smiled, "…but, it will do." Al dumped the brush in the old paint can and put the can down on the floor and out of the way. With shaky, black-stained hands, he grabbed the edge of the white sheet and gently pulled it up. The alchemist shook the linen up and over the dying Senator, draping her small body with the transmutation circle. Nothing would stop him from returning her body to normal. Nothing. Not even the cost. He thought a moment on exactly what HIS equivalent exchange would be. With all the damage to her body, Alphonse knew just an arm and a leg probably wouldn't cover it.

"Oh, well." He readied himself for what parts of his own body would be used as the raw materials to reconstruct Julia's. "If Brother could endure it, I know I can." Al took a deep breath and raised his hands readying to clap. He hoped with all hope he'd survive. Besides, there was always automail…

"Alphonse Elric!" That sharp voice, the voice of the hawk startled the alchemist. "Don't you DARE!"

"Please don't try to stop me, Miss Hawkeye," His face lowered and his eyes darkened. "I'm sorry, I don't know your rank anymore."

"That doesn't matter, stop what you're doing!" Riza's voice carried as strong as steel into Al's ears.

"This is not your problem, please don't stop me." He eyed her and for the first time, noticed she pointed her handgun at his head. "Shoot me, if you have to."

"Al?" He shocked her with his seriousness. "I cannot let you do this."

"It's not YOUR decision!" Anger welled up within the normally calm soul. It was his life to do with what he pleased. "I am going to save Julia!" He readied himself to start the transmutation.

"I thought you were the  _smart_  Elric!" She holstered her weapon and came closer. "You were the one with reason." Riza slowly edged closer. "SELFISH boy!" She stood right beside him now.

"Selfish! How am I selfish for wanting to save her!" Al fumed, his whole body shook with anger. Before he knew it, two strong arms wrapped around his waist and held tight.

"Selfish boy!" Riza screamed again and gripped Alphonse with all her strength. "Your brother sacrificed his alchemy to bring you back! Now you want to throw it all away! You're thinking about Julia, you're not thinking about your FAMILY!"

"Let go, Miss Hawkeye! Let me go!" He tried to struggle and pry her arms from him but couldn't get her to release him. "I can't do this with you so close! You'll become part of the transmutation!"

"My father was an alchemist, remember." She smiled slyly. "I know this." She gripped tighter - there was no way she would let go. She slowly drug Alphonse away from the bed and the array.

"My, my…" The voice of authority startled the two.

"General?" Riza knew Roy would also never let Al do this.

"I'm jealous, Captain Hawkeye." Mustang strolled into the room and placed his hand on Al's shoulder. "You never hugged me like that." He finished her job of pulling Alphonse away from the transmutation circle. When all three were safe he turned and threw a hard punch, catching Al on his jaw knocking the youth down.

"I never hugged YOU at all." Hawkeye stood and brushed her pristine uniform back into place as Al massaged his injury. "Did you have to strike him?"

"Those Elrics are thick-headed." Roy rubbed his knuckles, thinking he succeeded in breaking at least one finger. "Aren't you, Alphonse?" He offered his hurt right hand to the young man who was now trying to stand and holding his face. Al stood up and glared at the General. He glanced back at Julia but couldn't stop the tears. Sure, his face hurt, but he wasn't crying because of it. Al had failed. He knew there was no way Mustang and Hawkeye would let him finish. He didn't know what else to do. Alphonse shoved the two soldiers aside and he ran.

"Al! Stop!" Hawkeye reached for him but he zoomed out of her grip.

"Stop him!" Mustang yelled at the Milosian guards as Alphonse also ran past. The two men chased after the alchemist.

"He's too upset to think clearly." Mustang hastily followed in the same direction, Hawkeye closely behind.

The commotion caused just enough distraction for Ashley to quietly sneak into Julia's room unnoticed by any of the hospital staff. He unceremoniously dumped the stolen Amestrian military jacket on the floor and walked over to the quiescent figure still cloaked in a human transmutation circle.

"I know now's the worst possible time for me to ask you to forgive me." He ran his right hand through his dark bangs and sat on the chair next to his sister's bed. "You can't even hear me, can you?" He chuckled a bit and then a noise, a slow creak caught him off guard. He turned at the sound. "Winry?"

"What, what are you doing?" Winry didn't know how to perform alchemy, but she knew there was a circle on top of Julia and one powerful alchemist sitting next too her. It frightened her.

"I'm not sure. But, I think I'm going to save her." Ashley clapped his hands together and slammed his right hand against the wall. The plaster rumbled and undulated toward Winry and behind her then to the ground. In an instant, hard stone rose up sealing closed the open doorway and trapping them in the room. He stood and quickly came toward the distraught mechanic, backing her into the wall.

"Someone will be here soon…you don't want to do anything rash."

"They won't come in time." He slowly leaned in against her, breathing dangerously close to her as he spoke. "I have something to tell you." Ashley gingerly took her left hand in his right. "That night you came to my room…after drinking too much…" He brought her soft hand to his face.

"What really happened?" Her body shook, Winry couldn't help it, Ashley could end her life right here.

"Nothing happened, but I do have a confession." He brought her fingers to his mouth and gently kissed them.

"What?" She dreaded the answer.

"I didn't keep my eyes closed when I put you in my t-shirt." In an instant he threw the arm he was holding up against the wall with his right hand and with his left, he transmuted the wall, the plaster turning to stone and a thick band encasing her arm, effectively trapping the girl against the wall. Ashley stepped away as Winry tried with no luck to free her arm.

"You jerk!" She struggled but couldn't break out of the stone. "Why'd you do this?!" She turned her icy cold stare at the older alchemist.

"To keep you out of this." He leaned against her once more, feeling the warmth of her body. It still shook beneath him.

"Get away." She threatened and he ignored her, putting his mouth against her ear.

"Say you'll leave it all and run away with me." He paused. "Say you'll do this and we both will walk away from here forever, together."

"I can't." She couldn't stop the tear falling down her cheek. Ashley stood back to regard her. "I don't love you. I can't leave with you."

"Thank you." He straightened his shoulders and wiped the tear from her face. "I couldn't do this without that." He smiled and turned toward his sister.

"Ashley?" Winry pulled at her arm, but it was no use, she was not getting out without someone's help. "What are you doing?" She got louder. "Ashley?" Winry screamed as Ashley Crichton clapped his hands together and brought them down on the transmutation circle.

 

* * *

 

"Brother?" Alphonse wiped his nose with his sleeve and stumbled into the ward looking for Edward and Winry. Having evaded Mustang and Hawkeye, he started pulling away the linen dividers going bed to bed in his search. Finally, he pulled some fabric aside and there lay his brother, still sleeping. 

Click.

The sound of a pistol being cocked reverberated through the young alchemist's ears. Edward was not alone.


	14. Snap!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ...for the first time in their whole lives something actually succeeded in splitting the atomic bond of their love and friendship.

Bang! Bang!

Moments earlier, the bright blue light made her squeeze her eyes shut tightly. Now, loud pounding on the alchemically created wall brought Winry Rockbell to her senses. Slowly, she opened her eyes to try to assess just what just transpired.

"Hey! What's going on?!" A man's voice echoed through the rock and mortar. "The Senator is in there! Someone help!"

She pulled at her left arm but could not free it from the rock that encased it and held her to the wall. Winry also felt the vibrations of the men on the other side, frantically pounding to get to their beloved senator. She could not muster enough strength to call out to them, especially after taking in the horrible scene before her.

Ashley, or what was left of him, lay on the floor next to Julia's death bed. Credit to Winry's excellent automail work, his sole metal limb still clutched the linen transmutation circle on top of his sister while the rest of him rested upon the cold floor below.

_The rest of him._

She gasped upon seeing what remained of the strong young man. Both legs were gone, sheared off at the hips. Ashley's right arm was gone as well. But most gruesome and what made her stomach turn was the horrible red pool ever spreading around his body. Winry screamed. She couldn't hold it back. She witnessed his life ebbing away in that red pool and she could not free herself to stop it. Upon hearing the mechanic's scream, Julia's guards started pounding frantically on the wall and yelling for an alchemist.

"Ashley!" She tugged at her hand until she felt her own warm blood trickle down her arm. It was no use. "Ashley!"

"Stop." Despite the trauma to his body, the man's voice carried across the room strong and warm. "Don't struggle."

She couldn't believe he could say this. Ashley lay dying on the floor and he worried about her insignificant hand. "Please, I have to stop your bleeding!"

"Stop."

She couldn't see his face from his position on the floor. Winry only wanted to keep him from dying. Her ever optimistic mind already came up with the plan for installing automail to replace his newly missing limbs.

"I can save you, but I can't get free!"

"Don't." Ashley's voice became labored. "There's no time. Just talk to me, just for a while."

"Please!" She wondered, thought back to a few minutes earlier. Had she answered yes to his question, had she actually agreed to run away with this man would he have made a different choice? "Ashley, it's my fault, I'm sorry." Winry couldn't stop the tears as she slid down the wall and hung limply from her concrete shackle.

"Never think that. I knew what I was doing."

"What, what should I tell Julia?"

"Tell her that I wish things turned out differently for us. Tell her I wish mom and dad weren't murdered, hell I wish they weren't alchemists…sometimes. Tell, her, tell her I'm sorry I had to leave again." He struggled to make these last words.

"I promise, I promise I'll tell her everything." She looked to his ravaged form on the floor. "Ashley? Ashley!"

* * *

"I won't fail to kill him this time." The stout man, obviously in pain from his severe burns, raised the pistol to Edward's temple. "I really doubt you can heal him if I put a bullet in his brain. Or, actually, that would be fun to watch you try for a minute or so before I end your miserable existence too." His scarred hand shook trying to keep the gun in place.

"Alphonse?" Mustang and Hawkeye came into the room in time to witness the scene. Roy realized they stumbled into a dangerous situation and put an arm out, stopping Riza from moving forward.

"Stop! Stop right there!" The crazed man yelled, bringing all the other patients and hospital staff in the large ward to a standstill. No one moved.

"Listen...you, you are all alone here, please don't make it worse…" Al tried to speak reason to the injured man, a man he recognized as Ashley's commander. He had evidently snuck into the hospital for treatment and by luck, stumbled upon the former Fullmetal Alchemist.

"All those years of planning…the months and months of secret construction. All for nothing!" His finger twitched against the trigger. "And HE couldn't even perform alchemy!"

"Please, hand me the gun, you're not well…" All the emotion fell from Alphonse's face and no one in the room noticed the faint blue sparks leaping from his brown shoes. The trickle of blood that flowed from the corner of his busted lip let a tiny drip slide off his chin, then ebbed and bobbed as it fell to the floor. It never made it to the pale green linoleum. The drip rolled and undulated into a perfect round sphere and rose up in front of Al's face.

"No, I think I'm going to kill both of you and then find that son-of-a bitch subordinate of mine and make him pay!"

"Alphonse." Mustang whispered and silently held his hand up in preparation to snap. Having seen and passed through the gate, he now was perfectly capable of using his trademark flame alchemy without ignition gloves.

"I really think you should stand down, please. We'll get someone to get you something to ease the pain of your wounds."

Sweat fell down Riza's temple and just as with Alphonse's blood, it formed a sphere and rose in the air, suspended by alchemy. She suddenly shifted her brown eyes to her left and saw that everywhere in the room, small items rattled on their resting places: pencils vibrated and rose into the air, needles and other medical implements shook and ascended. Water in patient's cups bubbled up and formed droplets levitating upward. Even pens left their owner's pockets to float alchemically in the air unaided by human hands.

The officer's eyes shone with anger and insanity. He failed to notice the now hundreds of tiny objects collected from the four corners of the large room now floating around them. Mustang grimaced, not sure if he could ignite the bastard before he shot Ed, but he also knew exactly what Alphonse was planning and for a small fragment of a minute, the General was afraid.

Suddenly and silently, it was over.

Ashley's commander dropped his gun and it fell with a loud clank on the floor. He gasped, a terrible sound that snapped Alphonse out of his self-imposed trance. The young Elric's face twisted in horror in what he had just done as the officer slumped to the ground dead, his body now impaled by pencils, pens, coins, toothpicks-all the objects Al collected from the room. These objects, even the round spheres of sweat and blood acted as bullets propelled by alchemy into his body and head.

"Alphonse?" Riza couldn't disguise the horror in her voice.

"I asked him to stand down…he, he wouldn't."

"Yes, you did." Mustang's stare into his subordinate's brown eyes silently communicated what they both were thinking. Alphonse had become too dangerous. Roy knew that there was no way the boy could ever return to his normal life now. He knew that if Al wouldn't commit himself to serving Amestris, they wouldn't allow such a dangerous human weapon to live. Mustang frowned in anger and despair.

"What, what's going on? Al?" Slow movements snatched everyone's attention back to the elder Elric, his amber eyes wide and looking at his brother. "Where's Winry?"

"Ed? Are you ok?" Al came to his brother's side, not looking at the body on the floor.

"Yeah, I feel pretty good, actually…Al?" Ed's eye's grew large as he saw the dead officer. "What happened?" Edward sat up quickly and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. "Alphonse?" Horror wavered the young man's voice.

"He, he was going to shoot you brother." Al pressed his right palm to his head, clearly upset. "I asked him to stop. Mustang you heard me, right?"

"Yes, Al, we heard you." He couldn't mask his sadness. Roy wished they all weren't in such close quarters so he could have ignited the bastard and saved Al from having to kill the man. He wondered if this was the first life Alphonse ever had to take. The General hoped it was his last.

"It's alright, Al." Edward's voice turned warm and he reached out and grabbed his brother's wrist, pulling him closer. The elder brother felt his sibling shake beneath his grasp. "Alphonse. It will be alright." He stood and embraced his little brother.

"No. It's not." Al broke free from his brother. "I didn't have to kill him." He wiped his eyes, the tears flowing freely now and he backed away from his friends and his brother.

"Alphonse Elric." Mustang's authoritative voice almost stopped Al from escaping, almost.

"Sorry. I'm sorry." Seeing his only exit blocked, Al turned and ran toward the window. He leapt up and transmuted the glass just before he broke through. True to his new abilities, the young man shot up into the air and disappeared.

"Al!" Ed jumped up but became tangled in his IV tether and failed to stop his brother. Angrily, he pulled the catheter from his arm and ran to the window but didn't catch a glimpse of Alphonse. He rubbed his tender arm and slowly rejoined the others.

"Hawkeye. Get rid of this carcass." Roy tossed a linen sheet over the officer. He eyed her strangely as he did this.

"Yes sir." Riza did not miss the General's subtle signal. She knew it was unorthodox for him to ask her to dispose of this dead man when they were in a hospital full of orderlies to take him to the morgue. She knew there would be more orders to come.

Everyone in the room, all the doctor's, nurses and other patients started gathering their wits trying to process just what transpired. All this was interrupted by shouting from the hallway.

"Alchemist! We need an alchemist!" One of Julia's guards ran past the door and Mustang ran out to catch them.

"What is going on?"

"Someone has sealed themselves up inside the room with the Senator!" The man panted. "The mechanic is trapped with her!"

"Winry?" Edward ran toward the man.

"We need help!"

"Take care of this." Mustang growled at Riza and she nodded as he and Edward ran after the guard to Julia's room.

* * *

Winry hung limply from her encased left arm. Her hand was numb but she no longer felt her body could support her weight. The blood, HIS blood had seeped all the way to her feet and she watched the red liquid roll along the floor traveling in minute and unseen lows in the linoleum. She knew he had passed a long time ago. The men outside, frantic to get to their Senator periodically brought her out of this malaise. She hoped they'd get in soon as she felt her grip on sanity coming loose.

"Stand back!" The same authoritative voice she heard while in the emergency room reverberated through the thick concrete wall. A distinctive ring sounded and alchemy deconstructed the wall just as alchemy had constructed it earlier. Mustang and Edward stormed the room, followed by Julia's guards.

"Winry!" Edward turned and ran toward her, his bare feet sloshing through Ashley's blood. "Are you hurt?" He helped her to her feet and ran his hands along the stone round her left arm but was unable to free her. "Mustang! Help me!" He growled at the General who stood solemnly over the mutilated body of Ashley Crichton. Roy turned and quickly spanned the short distance.

"Winry, Ed, please lean as far away as you can." The two blondes complied and the General clapped his hands together and placed them on ether side of the mechanic's trapped arm. The stone de-materialized leaving her bruised arm free once more.

"Thanks." Winry rubbed her limb to improve the circulation but before she could get the blood flow going, Edward pulled her tightly into her arms.

"You, you're ok?" He squeezed her hard, worried she'd disappear.

"Fine. I'm fine." She let him hold her, she gave in, and felt grateful to feel his body not wanting to let go.

"I thought I'd lost you again." He sighed, and the image of Ashley stealing her away to the valley flashed through is mind.  The young man rest his chin on her shoulder. "I'm not making that mistake, ever again." Edward released her from his bear hug but still held her.

"He's dead." Mustang's grim voice broke them from each other's spell.  

"What about the Senator?" One of her guards hovered over her, trying to ascertain her condition. "Where's a doctor?!"

"Julia?" Edward, sill holding Winry, turned toward the prone girl. Mustang maneuvered around the corpse on the floor and placed a hand on the Senator's neck to feel for a pulse.

"She's alive. Huh?" Much to his surprise, the bandages around her face unraveled a bit revealing perfect, unblemished skin. He grasped the sheet with the makeshift human transmutation array and jerked it off her body.

"It worked, didn't it." Winry uttered as she placed her head on Edward's shoulder. She hoped Ashley's sacrifice was not in vain.

All of them slowly hovered around the bed to see the sleeping girl. The leg she lost years ago saving her brother and restoring his face had been returned. All the damage caused by the terrorist bombing was healed.

"Let me see." Finally a doctor came to inspect the senator, while another assessed her brother. He slowly removed her facial bandages revealing perfect pale skin. "Impossible!"

Julia Crichton was whole.

* * *

"Edward. I, I have to get out of here." Winry was just through with the hospital and everything that happened. Julia was still unconscious. She had just watched Ashley die. Alphonse was missing. With nothing more to contribute, the mechanic just wanted to slip into a coma for a few hours and regroup. "Take me back to Julia's house."

"Fullmetal, let me get a car to take you back." The General motioned to Hawkeye and she nodded in understanding.

"Stop calling me that." Ed growled and placed a protective hand around Winry's shoulder as the two exited the hospital intent on getting as far away from that place as possible. "We will walk, it's not far." Ed held on tight to his mechanic, fearing she'd get away from him again.

"Are you sure? It's starting to rain."

"We'll be fine, thank you." Winry sighed exhausted. She just wanted to sleep for twenty hours. As warm as it was, the rain would be a good thing too. She and Edward started walking away as the rain came.

"Sir!" A soldier in blue ran up to the officers. "Alphonse Elric has been spotted!" He panted.

"Al?" Edward turned at the mention of his brother's name.

"Take me!" Mustang turned on his heels and followed the lone soldier. Riza Hawkeye did not follow. She looked on the group of soldiers and smirked as she slowly but urgently carried off in another direction.

"Come on, Winry!" Edward held her hand tight and hoped they both had the strength to keep up with the Amestrians. He had to find Al, he had to make sure he was safe too. Happily, the girl with him had the same determination despite her weariness.

"Damnit!" Ed didn't know where all the soldiers came from, they just appeared running down the street with them, overtaking them until he could no longer find General Mustang among the sea of blue. "Where did he go?"

"Over there!" Winry pointed to an alleyway where most of the Amerstrian soldier seemed to have congregated.

"Stand down Alphonse!"

"Al?" Ed's voice cracked and a chill went down his spine as he heard Mustang screaming at his brother. He'd heard that tone in his voice before. He'd heard it when Mustang had been determined to incinerate Envy in the bowel's of central on the Promised Day. Terrified, he pulled Winry quickly through the crowd of soldiers. He didn't care how, he was going to get to the front of them.

"Ed? What's going on?" Winry was scared too. Almost at her breaking point, the girl just couldn't handle one more tragedy this night.

"You stand down, Mustang!" Alphonse stood his ground, cut off from escape by a wall. Mustang stood before him, his hand raised and ready to launch his flame should Alphonse attack.

"Elric!" A gruff voice carried through the crowd and the men parted, whispering as they moved. "Listen to him!" Fuhrer Grumman and his entourage threaded their way to the front and stood next to Edward and Winry. "Just listen to us! Your power, your expertise would be an asset to your country!" The old man really wanted the alchemist to join their ranks.

"I spent my childhood as a military dog, no more!" The rage coming from the otherwise docile young man startled Ed and Winry.

"Al! C'mon! I'll figure something out, just back down!" Edward screamed, trying to knock some sense into his brother.

"No! Ed, I just want to get back to Xing. You know they are not going to let me leave!" He scrunched his eyes closed and slowly, things started to happen. "Everyone, just get outta my way!"

Just as in the hospital ward, items started to rattle and rise up in the dark alleyway. Rocks, sticks, garbage levitated up and hung suspended around the young Elric. General Mustang started to worry, he scowled and clenched his ignition hand.

"Alphonse! Please!" The General made one last attempt at getting the dangerous youth to submit.

"Brother." Al's amber gaze held fast to his brother's. "Don't give up."

"No." Edward muttered. He knew what Alphonse was going to do. He knew his brother felt trapped.

"Everyone! Move!" With a flourish of hurricane strength wind, Alphonse pushed the air out of the alley and toward the man threatening him. The objects, the projectiles started to fly.

Snap!

When they were little kids, Ed, Winry and Al were inseparable. They camped out in their front yards, they fished, climbed trees and got into a lot of trouble together. The trio shared the pain of losing parents. They shared the pain of losing limbs and body. They traveled together and grew up together. And, despite miles separating them at times, they always knew they'd reunite or would be a family unit. But, right now, right now and for the first time in their whole lives something actually succeeded in splitting the atomic bond of their love and friendship. Roy Mustang's fire had extinguished Alphonse Elric's life.


	15. Hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just ask Maria Ross if the General's flames hurt.

"Honestly, you just need to stop all this…this…WHATEVER it is you always do to ruin my automail. JUST STOP!" Winry adjusted the last bolt on Edward's arm, calling an end to the three days of hard work.

"Ah, c'mon, give me a break, woman!" Ed sneered and turned from the girl.

"Seriously!" She started chucking her tools into the toolbox on the table. "I know you can find a way to restore both your bodies…just why can't you do it without DESTROYING my automail!" Her gloved hands clenched into tight fists. "And STOP GETTING HURT!" She tore off her gloves and threw them on top of her toolbox then stormed out of the work room.

"Crazy!" Edward's own anger started to boil "I'll do whatever the HELL I WANT! It's how it's gotta be!" He tugged on his t-shirt and almost fell over trying to pull on his pants while so mad.  _How DARE she! He had to do whatever it took!_ Sometimes he thought Winry just didn't get that. It frustrated him. His mind swarmed with anger, so much he shook. He had to do something to work it out or he'd break a table or another piece of furniture, so he stomped outside and found the old ax in the woodshed and began taking out his torment on blocks of wood.

"He's such a jerk!" Winry saw him leave and watched as he brought the heavy ax down on the old, seasoned wood, yelling at it with each blow. She huffed and stood there boiling as her grandmother passed by puffing nonchalantly on her pipe.

"We needed that wood chopped or you'd have to do it." She smiled and blew smoke rings toward her granddaughter. "Or we'd have to pay one of the boys in town." Pinako let out a sly chuckle. "Seems like we got the good deal here: he pays for your fine craftsmanship AND throws in some chores to boot!"

"Yeah, I guess so." Winry exhaled. "His military stipend keeps us afloat when it's lean." She eyed her grandmother knowingly. Both women knew perfectly well that they'd rather have Ed and Al helping out because they had two real hands to help with - that they never lost their bodies. To hell with the money the state paid them to keep his arm and leg from falling off. "I feel like taking a walk." She tugged off her bandanna and wiped the sweat from her brow with it, then tucked it safely in the back pocket of her work pants.

"Suit yourself." Pinako turned toward the kitchen. "A little exercise will calm both of your nerves."

The blond girl stomped through the front door and onto the dusty dirt path, stirring up little puffs of dry ground as she went. Resembool hadn't seen such a dry summer in ages and the heat parched the ground. Winry heard Edward still yelling at the wood before he brought down his ax and she squared her shoulders and continued to storm off. It didn't take her long before she heard sound of the rolling water of the river and decided that dipping her toes in would do wonders on helping with the heat and calming the foul mood Edward caused. She tossed off her sandals and rolled up the legs of her pants and stepped into the cooling waters.

"Ahhhhh, nice." She said out loud.

"I bet it feels real cold!" The tinny voice reverberated through metal and into her ears.

"Oh!" She startled, turned and slipped on a river rock. Having lost her balance, Winry fell unceremoniously butt first into the cold water.

"Oh my gosh! I'm sorry!" Alphonse had been sitting under a tree and enjoying the beautiful day. Having a armor body, the boy didn't need to take cover from the sun, but he didn't want to come back to the house and radiate heat like an oven, so he chose a nice shady spot to watch the river for a while as Edward got his automail installed. He leapt up amazingly fast for such a large, lumbering body and reached out a hand to Winry.

"You just startled me," She smiled as the river flowed past her and took Al's enormous hand and he pulled her up in one fell swoop. "Actually, I think I needed a good dunk in cold water." She smiled at the boy and they both walked over to the shade tree.

"Did you and Brother fight?" Al sat down.

"Yeah, the usual." She joined him on the cool grass and tried to wring some of the moisture from her work pants. "He just wont listen." Her face turned from warm to angry. "Hey, and neither will you!" She focused her anger on the boy in armor.

"Woah! What? What do you mean?" Alphonse raised up his huge hands in defense.

"You! You're the voice of reason in this family!" She nearly spat. "Why do you LET him do these dangerous things? I mean, where he goes YOU go! Why can't you stop him?"

"I try! I do!" His glowing eyes flashed with his words. "But you know when Brother gets something in his head…I try to protect him when he does something dangerous, though."

"Try to protect him?" She clenched both her fists. "I KNOW he was in the hospital, he had to have medical attention for most of those terrible scars on his body. He came here all beat up and mangled, just how did you protect him?"

"Winry." Al's voice morphed from scared to calm, he needed to soothe this upset girl. "Yes, we take risks, but we are closer than ever to getting Brother's arm and leg back."

"Don't forget you! Don't forget getting YOU back!" She started to cry. Why did Al only think of his big brother, why didn't he do anything for himself? It hurt her so, it pained her heart to watch him quietly watching them as they lived and he couldn't enjoy the same aspects of life. He couldn't enjoy Granny's good cooking or her apple pie. He couldn't even feel the nice cool water of the river on a hot day.

"I…I…never forget." He said slowly and seriously. His moment of sadness was interrupted by the thunk of a human body coming in contact with his hard metal frame as Winry hugged him violently. He couldn't feel it.

"Alphonse. I'm sorry!" She cried and held onto him, wishing so hard that this hot metal her arms wrapped around turned into flesh and she could see his smile once more.

* * *

She shot up in bed just as a bolt of lightening struck in the distance. Covered in sweat, Winry didn't recognize her surroundings at first. She realized that something warm encased her right hand and she turned to see Edward holding it. He had pulled the large high back chair next to the bed and had fallen asleep holding her hand. She then realized she was back in her room in Julia's house.

Then, with a flash of hurt and pain, the memories of the day all came rushing in. She remembered seeing Alphonse, her surrogate brother consumed by fire and fall in a heap of red and orange flames, flames so intense, no one could get close enough to extinguish them. It took two long, horrifying minutes before they died down enough to see his burnt corpse in the alley floor. And Edward, Edward just stood there. His intense stare never left his brother's body for the whole ordeal but when it did, it was to glare angrily at the General. She kept looking from Ed to Roy and she couldn't figure out when the former Fullmetal Alchemist would exact his revenge on the bastard who just killed his brother. When that just didn't happen, she snapped. Winry leapt on the General's back and started buffeting his head with her fists. He staggered and pulled at the enraged woman but could not extract her off .

" _Miss Rockbell, stop this!"_ He tried to stay in control, to say calm. He knew that Edward would most likely be the one doing the hitting and had readied himself for another fight seconds after he snapped his fingers. Mustang forgot about the mechanic.

" _I'm going to kill you!"_ She continued to beat him about his head successfully busting his lip. " _How COULD you do that, how could you do that to Alphonse!"_

" _Winry!"_ Ed's angered voice rang through the girl's tirade. " _Get down!_ " He grabbed her around her waist and pried her off of the General, she still fought him, landing on her feet throwing punches into the air.

" _I guess you'd want this to look real, huh?"_ Ed sneered and brought back his right arm and landed a solid punch on Mustang's jaw, effectively bringing the General down.

" _Stand down!"_ The click of a handgun being cocked behind his head echoed through the young man's ears.

" _Miss Hawekeye."_ Edward relaxed his body to signal to the sniper he meant no further harm to the General. " _Relax, I'm not going to harm him."_ He turned to indeed see her handgun but she lowered it and let him pass. " _Winry, let's go."_ He strolled past Riza Hawkeye as Mustang took to his feet.

" _Mustang,"_ Grumman spoke, " _You have a right to charge these civilians with assault."_

" _They've been through enough."_ He rubbed his sore face as his dark eyes met the leering golden eyes of Edward Elric. " _Let them go_."

" _C'mon, Win, I've had it with the military."_ He wrapped his arm around the mechanic as the rain began to fall harder, soaking their hospital clothing. Winry had lost her words. Unable to speak further, she let Ed lead her past the crowd of blue soldiers in the pouring rain.

" _Wait! Chief!_ " Breda's voice stopped them from fleeing the scene. " _Here!_ " He handed Ed his own civilian trench coat. Ed thanked him with a nod and wrapped the coat around Winry.

" _Thanks."_ Ed also thanked Breda's kind gesture with a sad smile.

" _No worries, Ed."_ The hefty man winked and spoke softly into the young man's ear. " _Just ask Maria Ross if the General's flames hurt_." He smiled and walked away, leaving the former alchemist's brain processing this information.

" _What did he mean_?" Winry managed through her tears.

" _Hope, Winry. He gave me hope_." He clung to her closer and looked up into the rain, letting it wash down his face and hair. " _I'll tell you when we get away from here."_

Somehow, and she couldn't really remember just how, they made it back to Julia's house.

* * *

"Hey." His quiet voice helped settled her nerves for a moment and she felt him scoot his warm body next to her on the bed. "Are you ok?" He still held onto her right hand.

"No." She knew he'd understand. But she also couldn't understand why he was so calm. "Ed, did all this really happen? Did, did Al…did Alphonse die?"

"It happened, Winry…but, I'm not so sure Al died."

"What?" She turned to him, her eyes swollen from crying. "Edward?"

"It just wasn't right." He came in closer. "Didn't you  _see?_ "

"Damn it!" Her anger rose. "Of course, I saw! I saw him burn in front of us!"

"No,  _think,_ Winry. You saw a flash. You saw an object on fire. He was already on the ground. Why didn't Al just…" He laughed internally at this thought. "Why didn't Al just fly up!"

Her eyes widened at the thought. Sure, Al could have just flown away, she'd seen him do it before. "Edward, is he alive?"

"Winry, I'm sure of it." He gently squeezed her hand for a good three seconds while she processed this information.

"I'm still confused." She turned her body toward the young man. "Why?"

"I don't think he had time to tell me." Ed placed his other hand in hers. "I think, I think Mustang was giving him an 'out'."

"An out?" Winry couldn't help but think that boys were just weird. What the hell sort of 'out' was Ed talking about? What would General Mustang need to help him out of?

He softly chuckled, remembering a time, long ago when his former commanding officer gave a young woman her way out by staging her death. "He's done it before, remember me telling you about Maria Ross?"

She sharply inhaled as the realization struck her too.

"I think Mustang gave Al a way to keep from being conscripted into military service." Edward frowned. "Alphonse is a very powerful alchemist now." The blond frowned and struggled to utter the next few words. "Even…even better than I…was." He said it, he confirmed that his baby brother's alchemy surpassed his own past abilities.

"Oh." It did make sense now.

She never really liked Roy Mustang. He stole her boys away from her when she was twelve. He placed that insane seed of hope into Ed's feverish mind and it grew into a burning bush of determination. Edward had to have automail and he had to push his recovery from three years to one. The boy took Mustang's offer of becoming a state alchemist and he passed the exam, making history for being the youngest ever. Then, he and Al left. Deep down, inside her heart, Winry hated the now General for planting this seed, for taking them away. Of course, it all worked out in the end and through it all, Roy always seemed to look out for the boys. It only made sense he was looking out for Alphonse now, making sure he was not made to become a dog of the military against his will.

"Win?"

"I'm thinking." She turned to Edward, the boy who used to annoy her with his reckless behavior. He grew into this handsome young man whose golden eyes desperately searched hers trying to figure out her mood. "How are we going to know? Will we see him again?"

"I know so." Ed smiled that wide cocky smile he'd flashed her on occasion. "I think we'll see him soon." His body was uncomfortably close. "Win, I have to ask you…something." Nervousness made his voice crack.

"What is it?" She had just tried to take it all in: Al dying, Al being alive. Now, this strange tone rang through Edward's voice and Winry suddenly became nervous herself.

"That morning." He tried to form his words in a way so as not to enrage the girl. Edward walked upon dangerous ground and he knew it. One misstep and he could lose his other leg on an exploding land mine of her intrepid anger and ability to turn her emotions on a dime. "That morning I found you at Ashley's…"

"Oh." Her guts churned. She knew where this was going.

"Were you two…did you?" Edward had no idea how to ask this beautiful creature before him if she'd had sex with another man.

"Ed!" She turned away, Winry could be angry, but she wasn't. This line of questioning just made her embarrassed.

"Yes?" His own stomach fell.

"No!" She crossed her arms and wanted to die. "No! No! I threw up on his shoes and on my dress. He let me sleep in his room." She didn't know if he'd believe her, but that was the only truth she knew.

"Are you sure?"

"What are you insinuating?" She knew what he was asking.

"Um, just…." Edward realized he's just tripped the mine and was about to die.

"Nothing happened!" She tried to get out of bed on the opposite side. "Would it have mattered?"

"Winry Rockbell!" Edward stood, obviously flustered. "Do you have any idea just  _why_ I came back to Table City?" His eyes narrowed and caught the mechanic off guard.

"Dumb luck?" She huffed, crossed her arms and looked away from this stare, his soul piercing gaze she was sure he also gave his enemies before he fought.

"No!" He raked his fingers through his now short hair. It was the first time Winry really noticed it since its length was cut and given to the chimera to use to track down Alphonse. She hadn't seen him with hair this short since he was a boy. "Ah! Woman!" Ed started pacing the dark room trying to find his words, trying to say the things in his heart and not messing it up.

"Your hair!" Winry couldn't help but blurt it out. Inside, she also thought Ed's new style still suited him. "I just can't get used to it so short!" She flashed him a calm smile that encouraged him further. He walked to her side of the bed and sat.

"I could say the same." He held his right hand to the side of her head and stroked her own golden strands. "I'm sorry I told you that you looked like a boy…you…really don't." He smiled.

"Yeah, I know." She patted his hand with her left. "I'm letting it grow out, though. Truthfully, I cut it when I was mad." She blushed.

"Mad?"

"I was mad. Pissed. Miffed." She lowered her gaze.

"What did your hair ever do to you?" He chuckled.

"Edward! I was mad at YOU!" It was her turn to smile. Cutting her hair just to piss Edward off now seemed so trite, so silly.

"I know." He moved impossibly close, they both felt the electricity, the pull each of their bodies exerted upon the other. "I was a jerk. I'm sorry to have made you wait so long without calling." His pointy canines sparkled through the enormous grin on his face.

"A total jerk." She couldn't look him in the eye. If she did, she knew she'd loose all of her resolve to stay angry with him.

"But, I've finished my work here, I'm ready to come back home. There was just one problem when I tried." He was inches from her now.

"What…what was that?" Her heart started beating so loudly, she was sure Edward could hear it. If he did, he didn't react.

"You." He picked up her left hand with his right and held it snugly. "You weren't there." When he released her hand, Winry felt something left behind in her palm. Something small, velvety and round.

"Ed?" She held up a small ring box.

"Are…are you going to open it?" His voice wavered showing his own nervousness. Edward also was glad that Alphonse had left the ring box in the pocket of his kitty pajama bottoms safely in his room or this moment may have been lost.

Winry slowly opened the black velvet box. Inside, a pure white diamond sparkled. The perfect stone was burnished into a band of yellow gold etched with fine markings. She ran her fingers along the band and immediately recognized Ed's old sigil, the crucified serpent. She cocked her eyebrow and then took the ring out and slid it on her left ring finger. It fit perfectly.

"The stone is embedded in the gold so there's no prongs to get snagged on your automail work." Ed seemed proud of himself. "I had it custom made in Central, but the gold came from a little town in Creta." He rubbed his finger on the ring and thought of the kindly old priest in Tribute where he obtained the gold. "Now the diamond, that is something special…" He held her hand and at the same time, rubbed his thumb along the ring. "Alphonse made the diamond for me when he was in Xing. It'd be illegal here in Amestris, but not a problem for an alchemist in Ling's country."

"Ed." She loved it. The simple design, the practicality of it and even the gaudy flamel crests all over the thing. "Did he use anything special to make the diamond?" She almost knew the answer.

"Yeah." His beautiful face hovered just inches from her own. "We, well, HE deconstructed steel into its components, mainly carbon, then used the carbon to construct the diamond."

"It must have taken a lot of steel…just where did he get it?"

"Not as much as you'd think." He could feel her sweet breath on his face. "He used one piece." Edward was leaning against her now. "My…my old automail arm."

"I thought, I thought it was destroyed."

"Yeah, it was in pieces, but we salvaged most of it." He interlaced the fingers of his right hand into hers and squeezed. "So?"

"So?"

"You told me you'd give me a hundred percent. Will you still do that?"

"I think we negotiated it down to seventy-five, right?" Her heart beat wildly in her chest.

"Winry?"

She didn't answer him. Instead, Winry met his mouth with hers and confirmed her answer with a soft kiss.

Since Edward arrived in Table city, the two had kissed before. Once he kissed her when she was asleep. Next they practically devoured each other's faces when they were drunk. She didn't count either as their first kiss, no, those didn't count at all. THIS was their first kiss. He gently moved his lips, wanting more of her, actually demanding her and she complied. She also felt his own heart beating strongly and so fast it radiated from his warm skin into her own body. The mechanic felt like swooning, like those loony girls described in the cheesy romance novels she hid away under her bed back home. She would have swooned, but she was already lying down, the effect would be lost. As Edward's kisses became more intense, more passionate, she felt his full weight upon her body and this didn't bother her, in fact, she relished it. She wanted him to confirm to her, non-verbally, that everything was going to be alright, that Alphonse was alive, that they were really engaged, that they were going to be happy forever. Winry encouraged him, she wanted him.

Someone cleared their throat. This small, insignificant sound was not lost to the two lovers. Ed and Winry opened their eyes and both knew the other had not made that sound. They were not alone.

"Well, did she tell you 'yes' or not?"

.

.

.

;)


	16. We're Going to Need a Bigger Wrench

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Pay attention, stick by me and take your biggest wrench. Got it?"

"Marshall, I assure you I am up to this." Julia sat up in her hospital bed, former Prime Minister Marshall stood at the foot, a worried expression upon his face. In his sixty years, he'd never seen someone so determined as Julia Crichton.

"Are you?" He paced the room. "You almost died and you lost your brother in one night. We can carry on the negotiations with the Amestrians without you. You and I have the same goals!"

"I feel fine!" She threw back the covers and placed her two perfect feet upon the cold floor, ignoring the slippers left by her bedside, she stood and walked toward the older man. The weary girl realized she indeed felt remarkably good, in fact, she couldn't' remember having a day her automail port didn't ache.

"Julia!"

"Ashley and I haven't spoken in years. I, I, will manage." She closed her eyes.

"The funerals will be in the morning. Are you up to that? Can you handle that and then facing the men most likely responsible for his death, the explosion at the council and for that young Elric boy."

"What did you say?" Horror struck. It couldn't't be. She stumbled back to the bed, barely making it to the mattress.

"Are you all right?" Marshall grabbed her by her shoulders. "Should I get a nurse?"

"What Elric boy? What are you talking about? WHICH one?" Her heart thumped and she barely could breathe the few seconds it took him to answer felt like hours.

"Alphonse…yes, that's his name, the boy who pulled you from the ruins of the council." Marshall sat down beside the distraught girl. "I'm sorry, I didn't know you weren't aware."

"He's dead?" Tears started falling, her eyes heavy with sadness. "H, how?"

"There was an altercation, I'm not sure of the details. He and that Amestrian General they call the Flame Alchemist fought…right after your brother…" He couldn't finish.

"Alphonse." Her anguish changed in a single moment. Julia's grief morphed to anger. Her people had been discriminated against, repressed and now defeated. When physical conflicts failed, she turned to politics and negotiations to gain benefits for Milos from both Creta and Amestris. The tortured girl decided at that very minute that talking solved nothing. Alphonse was the kindest, most gentlest soul she'd even encountered. She knew that soul while he lumbered around in a metal suit and she came to know him when he gained his body back. Julia loved both. How could his own people, his own  _friend_ kill him? She decided then and there, no more talking. No more trust.

"When are the funerals, Marshall?" She wiped the tears from her eyes.

"This morning, in a few hours. The militia, your brother, the Elric and other soldiers who lost their lives in the conflict yesterday...their bodies will be consecrated to the wind and flames."

"I want to be there. I'm going to the meeting too." Her voice hardened in the man's ears.

"If that's what you want, if that's what you can do." He stood, getting ready to leave. "I'll be sure to have a car ready for you, please do get some rest." He offered her a sad smile and left her alone with her despair.

* * *

"Who's there!" Edward leapt from his very comfortable position on top of Winry and stood protectively on the side of the bed, ready for a fight. He scanned the darkened room and noticed a shaded figure standing in front of the open balcony doorway, the now billowing curtains obscuring a proper view.

"Ed?" Winry sat up, now concerned for both their safety. She also was certain that the doors had been shut tight moments before.

The figure walked into the dim light, a light that reflected from his gentle amber eyes. "Calm down, Brother." Alphonse made his way into view.

"Al!" Winry closed the distance between herself and the younger Elric in a split second and tackled the soggy wet boy to the ground. "It's true! Ed was right!" She held his head and covered his face in happy kisses.

"Woah!" Edward came to his brother's aid before the elated girl smothered him. Not to mention, the sight of her kissing another man - albeit his brother - made his insides knot. "Stop that, Winry!"

"Speak for yourself, Brother." Alphonse cracked a goofy smile as the mechanic withdrew and started to wipe the joyous tears from her face. "I'll never tire of happy girls kissing me." He chuckled as his brother's mouth curled. Al sat up and gazed upon his two best friends in the entire world. "I knew you'd figure it out…you're the genius after all." He smiled a more genuine smile which radiated warmth and love from his pure heart…something his brother and surrogate sister could feel.

"I hoped I was right." Ed finally smiled and held Winry's left hand, the sparkle of the diamond on her ring finger caught the flying alchemist's eye.

"So! Did she say yes?" He looked from Winry to Edward and back.

"Well, you sort of interrupted." Ed didn't hide his annoyance, his mouth pressed into a thin line.

"Yes." A small affirmative squeak flew from the girls lips before she could stop it. "I mean…I will, I want to…um…"

"You will?" Edward's eyes beamed and his annoyed frown grew into a joyous smile. When he was a child his and his brother's only goal was to bring their mother back. After they performed the taboo, their goal became restoring all that was lost. Long years of struggle and they finally realized that goal then moved on to discover all they could about the world and of alchemy in an effort to help others. Somewhere along the way, Edward realized another goal in this life; he felt the urge to settle, to start another new life for himself and that life centered around the only sun in his solar system- the golden-haired mechanic that kept him and Al going through all of their trials. Winry.

"Finally!" Alphonse chuckled and rest his arms behind his head. "My mission is complete!" He wasn't at all perturbed because his brother and Winry ignored him.

"I mean, if you want to…" Winry's face turned four shades of pink and red as the former Fullmetal Alchemist grabbed her into a warm hug. "Yeah…I'll be Mrs. Elric. Rockbell-Elric." She hugged him back.

"Huh?  _Rockbell-Elric_?" He scratched his head. "Why not just Elric?"

"Brother, she said yes…don't mess it up!" Ed never seemed to amaze with his ability to muck things up so quickly.

"What's wrong with keeping  _my_  name?" The short hairs on the back of her head bristled with the thought her loving fiancé, the golden boy next door could possibly be sexist.

"Don't you  _have_  to take your husband's last name?" Ed stared at her incredulously.

"EDWARD, I'm a professional! My customers know me for the name Rockbell! I can't sacrifice the name recognition for my business!" She started to get mad.

"Please, you two!" Alphonse hoped Ed and Winry would make through a marriage proposal without fighting but obviously they couldn't. A loud knock at the door interrupted his protest.

"Who's there?" Winry uttered loudly.

"Open the door! Military police."

"Brother, I'm supposed to be dead…I'll find you two later!" Al leapt up and toward the balcony. He turned to smile at his family. "Don't fight now. It's not the time." The younger Elric waved and disappeared into the rainy early morning light.

"Open up!" The officers began pounding.

"Winry, stay behind me." Edward stood bravely in front of the blond and strode toward the locked door. "I'm coming. You don't need to break the door down!" He unlocked the latch and the door burst open, three Amestrian soldiers poured into the room, shoving Edward aside.

"Who is in here?" One demanded.

"Hey!" Ed rubbed his shoulder where he was shoved and immediately came to Winry's side and helped her up from the floor.

"Why are you here?" Another soldier demanded.

"We are guests of Julia Crichton." Winry interjected.

"Her home is being commandeered for military negotiations. You must clear out!"

"Please, give us a minute to collect our things!" Edward growled as Winry began throwing items into a large canvas bag.

"I'm ready." Winry panted and slung the heavy bag over her shoulders. "Ed, your stuff?" She motioned to the door.

"I have to go across the hallway for my belongings." Ed snarled and the officers let him pass. He also tossed items in a duffle bag and joined Winry in the hallway.

"Both rooms are clear, sir."

"Good. Get these two out and continue securing the house."

"You heard him, move!" The soldier pushed Edward toward the stairway.

"Fine, fine." The young man snarled and took his fiancée's hand, leading her down the stairs. They quickly took the steps but a shock of short-cropped strawberry blond hair caught Edward's eyes. "Julia!" There in the grand hallway stood the former Senator of Milos, whole and very much alive.

"Edward. Winry." She didn't smile as she greeted the two.

"What's going on? Why are they kicking us out of your house?" The mechanic caught her breath from running the stairs and made her way over to Julia.

"Fuhrer Grumman and his men are going to conduct a peace treaty meeting here after…after the funerals." She looked down.

"Julia!" Winry realized that the Senator didn't know that Alphonse was alive and her heart ached to tell her. A sharp elbow knocked her ribs signaling her to shut up. "Ed! Ow!" She rubbed her side.

"Too many people here, Winry." Edward whispered and the girl realized that Julia might keep Al's secret but not the soldiers in the room. She grunted her reply.

"Are you ok?" Winry came to Julia's side.

"No." She looked extremely tired and forlorn. "I'm not."

"Please, keep hope alive, I promise, this will pass and it will get better." The mechanic's cheerfulness only seemed to irk the former Senator.

"How can you say that!" She attacked. "Seven hundred years of occupation and slavery and my people had sovereignty for a brief time! Now the Amestrian filth has robbed us again!"

"Julia…" Her tone worried Edward. He'd heard it before, a night long ago when the optimistic girl swallowed the sanguine star, a philosopher's stone created from the lifeblood of soldiers years before. "Don't forget. Winry, and I…and Al are Amestrian." He looked, or tried to look into her turquoise eyes but the young woman refused to meet his gaze.

"Look what that got Alphonse! He was the kindest soul I ever met! And they killed him." She turned and stared hard at the former Fullmetal Alchemist. "Al died just like my people, at the hands of the Amestrians. Cretan, Amestrian, I don't care, they are all harbingers of war and destruction. If you ally yourself with your nation I can only believe that you are too."

"How CAN you say that?" Winry rushed the girl, startling an aggressive response from her body guards. Julia waived at the men and they allowed the blond to approach. "I came to help you, you believed in me and I believed in your mission of rebuilding this city!" Winry couldn't believe that her friend's heart had hardened in the few days since she was hospitalized. "Governments and nations come and go, but the heart of the country is it's people! As long as you keep moving forward, you will survive." The two young women came face to face.

"That is a simple country girl way of seeing it. And, I don't just want to survive as a separate nation any longer…I want to surpass my captors, the Amestrian government!" Winry winced at the insult.

"What are you saying?" Edward almost yelled.

"I now believe that Milos can over come this and no longer with talks and negotiations."

"Edward? What does she mean, what is she saying?" Winry knew it but didn't want to believe it.

"She's talking about suicide, Winry." He took his love's hand and pulled her away from the former Senator and he leaned toward the exit. "She thinks she can still fight this and even take on our nation."

"If you two stay, you'll be caught up in this. I don't want another friend or brother's blood on my hands." Her lips quivered as she held back her tears. "Leave! Leave Milos or you'll die!" Her eyes burned with rage.

"C'mon, Winry, this is no longer our fight. I don't plan to witness another massacre." He drug the mechanic with him toward the door. She followed him but then pulled her hand from his warm grasp.

"No! Wait a minute, Ed." She ran toward Julia and embraced her friend. "Julia, please, don't do anything stupid. There will be good things to come from this, please believe me!" She yearned to tell her of Alphonse, she hoped that the news he was still alive would keep the woman from going over the edge of reason. "Please. Just, don't do anything rash, you have to trust me!"

"Winry, my friend." Julia couldn't look at her. "Alphonse's funeral is in less than an hour. You'll want to be there. Perhaps witnessing his pyre reduce to ash will change your mind." She shook herself free from the mechanics grasp and motioned for her guards to follow her into an adjoining room.

"Julia! No!" Ed held tight to her as they both watched Julia Crichton disappear.

"C'mon, Win. We have to attend the funeral." His face fell. Watching the many dead consumed by fire was not what he wanted, but they both had to put up the face of grief or Alphonse and Mustang's ruse would be for naught.

"Are you crazy? We have to find Al, he has to talk to her, to knock some sense into her mind before she does something nuts!"

"I know. But we have to, I have to get her alone. We can't risk it." He held her face so that she saw the earnest in his golden eyes. Edward couldn't betray his brother.

"I hate it when you're right." Winry pouted.

"C'mon, then." He took her hand and they both ran out of the mansion into the welcoming light of a new day.

* * *

The couple meandered through the desolate cobblestone streets, dodging burned out automobiles and various debris from the earlier skirmishes between Milos and Amestrian forces. Edward held fast to Winry's hand and made her keep up with his frantic pace. He didn't want any further harm to come to her now that he declared his intentions and she accepted and this time the words were said - not just alluded to with alchemic terms. He didn't really know where they would go and even worse, how Alphonse could safely find them without blowing his cover. He soured the genius expanse of his mind and remembered a place they might find refuge. Edward jerked Winry around a familiar corner.

"Ouch!" She protested. "Edward, having trouble keeping up here!"

"I'm sorry," He slowed his pace down a little. "Just want to get us inside and try to reconnect with Al." Soon enough, the simple façade of Winry's Automail shop came into their view. Thankfully, all the windows and the door stood intact, no looting or mortar fire damaged it. They stopped at the entryway. "Win, I hope you have the key…"

"I kept it in this bag." She panted as she rifled through the worn canvas bag she carried and finally found the shiny brass key she sought. Winry quickly unlocked the door and the two found themselves finally inside a place they could rest and seek solace. Edward shut the door behind them, locked it and began pulling down all the shades.

"Winry, I imagine they'll perform the funerals in the main square. That's a good way's off to walk. Are you feeling up this this?" Ed let his satchel plop to the floor.

"No, but we have to." She didn't want to see all the bodies, especially Ashley's. "Ed, I feel like all this is getting way out of control…more than three kids from Resembool can handle." She started pulling out items of clothing from her bag.

"We're not kids anymore, Win." His voice sounded so sad like he really wished they could go back in time and become those children.

"What, what do you think she's going to do?"

"I've no idea."

"Is Julia, you know, capable of, you know…killing people?" Edward had told her the story, of how after the battle three years earlier, Julia performed human transmutation and saved Ashley's life, restoring his face and sacrificing her leg for the raw materials.

"She saw the gate. I know she did. Ashley probably did too." He frowned as his own memory of the gate and of Truth couldn't stop playing in his mind. "That means she should be able to transmute without a circle, like, like I could, like Al, Teacher and Mustang can now."

"Oh." Winry took in a huge breath, remembering the rose Ashley transmuted for her. "Ashley could! I saw it!" Her eyes grew wide with understanding. Even though Julia had spent years trying for peace, her sight of the Truth also made her a terrific human weapon. Like Edward used to be. "Ed. I don't know how, but we've got to get in there, we've got to stop her." No matter what, she had to make her friend see that killing these men would not end the circle of violence nor would it make up for the mistreatment of Milos.

"I know. I know." The former Fullmetal Achemist almost whispered. He opened his own satchel and pulled out items he managed to salvage from his hospital stay: a pair of leather and steel gauntlets and a single steel fan. He unfolded the fan into a perfect steel circle, its surface covered in alchemical and alkahestry runes. The fate of Milos could possibly lie within this one single piece of metal. He smiled sadly at the girl beside him, a girl who desperately sought an answer from his golden eyes.

"We have to do this." She reassured him, knowing that now, after all this time apart and seeking each other, after finally finding the courage to properly confess their love, this one horrible place may take them apart from each other again, this time permanently. Winry then did something out of the ordinary, something Edward alone would do to comfort her.

Winry placed her small hand on top of the Fullmetal Alchemist's head.

"Good." His spirits rose. "I needed that." He smiled at her and embraced her in a tight hug. "Pay attention, stick by me and take your biggest wrench. Got it?" He knew telling her to wait here at her shop would only get him smacked on the head.

"Got it!" Her heart pounded, not just because she and Ed were impossibly close, but with fear that they were about to stop another war. Not to mention, she left her biggest wrench back at Julia's house.


	17. Dark Secret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He wished he hadn't been so naive to believe she'd overcome that lust for power she'd tasted three years earlier when she swallowed the last sanguine star...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2/15/14 A/N: I've given up on estimating when this story will end. I think we're getting there. Who loves EdxWin? I do! I think they'd make a great team, only Ed never really gave her a chance until they had a crisis in Briggs. She's a tough cookie! Anyway here goes chapter 17. :)

 

> **_And deep inside, the way you hate them_ **
> 
> **_On the outside, doesn't show  
>  And, oh, they think that they defy you  
>  They are slaved to what you know_ **
> 
> ...[Dark Secret by Matthew Sweet](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGogksGPjNg&list=PLB320E242332FD1CC)

 

"Brother!" Alphonse grasped for Edward's outstretched arm, but his fingers just missed the limb floating in a sea of black before him.

"Al!" Edward screeched in terror as he watched his baby brother's body unravel and even in fright, his mind told him this was alchemical deconstruction. As Alphonse's form disappeared, Ed almost didn't feel the pain of his left leg disintegrating…almost. "Hold on! Al! Hold on!" He reached for him, desperately grasping for the only family he had left in this world. "Don't leave me! Don't let go!" His hand struck nothing. "Don't let go!"

Alphonse awoke gasping for air. This horrible dream, this terribly familiar dream of the night he and Ed tried to transmute their mother brought him to another morning. He knew that Edward was plagued by a similar one still and the younger brother doubted either of them would ever outgrow it. They committed the taboo, after all, it only seemed fitting that they both still suffer some sort of penance. He smiled. Al was glad for suffering a bad dream every now and again as opposed to being a suit of armor and Edward having an automail arm. Yeah, he'd take a few sleepless nights over the way it used to be for them.

"I've got to find Brother and Winry." He pulled his tired body up and gazed around the dusty room. To escape the soldiers (and the rain,) he found the attic of the old Table City Church a perfect place to hide for the rest of the early morning. He needed to think and figure out just how to get back to Xing. He really wanted to find Julia, to let her know he was ok and to say goodbye. However, something sat uncomfortably in the pit of his stomach. Something was still not right with Table City and he'd feel a lot better if Ed and Winry left this place. No, he made up his mind to see them before he returned to study alkahestry and there was only one way he could do it without giving himself away. He hoped he'd find the materials he'd need for the transmutation. "Wait!" He remembered something and stuck his hand deep in his trouser pocket withdrawing a precious item. The pale morning light reflected the golden amber strands of Edward's shorn locks – still held together by a leather cord and mottled with his brother's red blood.

"I hoped to be able to reattach this for Ed." He frowned, knowing Ed would eventually mourn the loss of his long hair when everything settled down. But, hair will re-grow and he needed it for the raw materials of a transmutation using both alchemy and alkahestry. "Ed's going to shit bricks when he see this!" Alphonse stood up and found the rest of the materials he needed: some shards of broken glass and wire. Al was so pleased he had Ed's hair, it would be more compatible with his own flesh and less likely to be rejected. The alchemist needed the raw keratin and collagen for an amazing alchemical feat... he just hoped he'd be able to undo it. The younger Elric would have to transmute his clothing too, but that would be the easy part compared to the real task at hand. "Here goes!" He clasped his hand together and started the process of understanding, deconstructing and reconstructing that he knew by heart.

* * *

"Are you sure you'll be able to do this?" Edward shrugged on a clean button up shirt and eyed the mechanic as he did the buttons. She ducked under the cover of her workbench that obscured his view of her changing. He still tried to peak as he donned the blood-stained leather and steel gauntlets.

"I have to." Winry yanked on her own gray pullover shirt, and sighed knowing this wasn't appropriate for a funeral but the only clean item in the bag she hastily threw together when the military threw them out of Julia's house. "Before I leave here, I have to say goodbye. We have to stop Julia from...herself, too." That part scared her because she wasn't quite sure what Julia was going to do. However, she remembered the burning fire in the girl's eyes as they left her house. Winry did not believe that the former senator would just leave things be and allow the Amestrian military regime to take over Table City once more. She stood up and straightened her top. Edward stood mere feet from her and leaned on the counter.

"I mean it. If something dangerous comes up, you have to listen to me, do what I say…I know that's hard for you to do." He waited for her protest and was rewarded with a hard glare and flaring nostrils.

"Edward!" She took a deep breath knowing she had to get herself together and tuck away the anger for a bit. "Let's just say, right now, I'll listen to you…since I know you have some fighting skills…" She maneuvered from behind the bench and began stuffing the rest of her wet clothing in her bag and slung it over her shoulder. "But only until we find Al, stop Julia from doing anything bad and get out of Table City! Got it?"

He smiled, glad that she managed to contain herself, but happy that she hadn't changed so much as not to try to put him in his place for trying to tell her what to do. Edward realized she had grown up a lot since he left for the west. "When we get back to Resembool, you can boss me around all you want. I'll look forward to it." He chuckled as her glare remained. God, he loved her. "C'mon." He extended his hand to help her around her bench and she begrudgingly took it. He slung his own bag over his shoulder and they exited the shop. "I imagine they'll do this at the city center, the Grand Common.

"Yeah," She took a minute to look up at the overcast sky. "At least the rain stopped." She took another deep breath. "Let's go!"

Edward led them both out of the automail shop and down the cobblestone streets toward the Grand Common. They hadn't traveled far before realizing they were alone. It was seven-thirty in the morning and there should be  _some_ people on the streets, if even to start cleaning up from the fighting the day before. He turned to Winry. "Maybe they're still scared of the army?" He shrugged his shoulders and they continued toward the city center.

"Win, something's not right..." An uncomfortable feeling welled up in his stomach as they turned the corner to see the Grand Common, the city center of Milos, Table City.

During the prior years reconstruction, artisans from Table City as well as a few foreigners worked side by side to repave and rebuilt the areas destroyed by the overthrow of the former Amestrian regime. Instead of raising new structures, a large area in the city center was designated the Grand Common, an acre or so circle flanked by merchant shops. A memorial fountain stood in the center with an abstract sculpture emulating the flapping wings of a dove of peace. Forged from solid bronze, the elements and the water oxidized the bronze into a beautiful green patina. At some point in the early morning, an area had been set up in front of the fountain where scores of bodies lay on small wooden pyres, ready to be given a proper Milotian fire funeral. A low platform had been erected to the side of the dead and the fountain, where the dignitaries of Amestris, the winners of the recent battle as well as the former Table City administration prepared to stand. Soldiers in blue uniforms as well a scattering of Cretan khaki gathered in the Common for as far as Edward could see.

"What's the matter?" Winry tugged on Ed's shirt sleeve.

"Why is it only soldiers..." His sentence was interrupted by a shrill shushing sound of someone trying to get their attention. Both turned to see a figure in an alleyway motioning for their attention. "Who are you!" Ed growled and stepped in front of Winry. Slowly, the shape in the dark moved into the morning light.

"Ivan!" Winry disregarded her protector and ran toward the man she had worked side by side for weeks. She hugged him. "What's going on?"

"Miss Winry." His eyes darted from Edward to the girl. "Both of you, leave, now!"

"Why? Why are there no Milotians here?" Edward stepped closer.

"I don't know! We were told to stay away from the Grand Common. I came to the automail shop, hoping you'd be there and saw that I just missed you...I had to warn you."

"Warn us?" Winry didn't understand why Ivan acted scared.

"Please, go back to the shop. Wait until it's safe to come out. That's what everyone was told..." He was on the verge of tears.

"Who told you?" Edward became forceful.

"It just spread from household to household in the early morning hours. I, I, don't know who started it, but it was said that we should be  _mindful of what happened to the soldiers three years ago_ and to stay away from the funeral. Miss Winry, Mr. Edward, something terrible is going to happen, please, please come with me, back to my home. I can keep you safe there until it's all over." He pleaded with them and turned to walk back into the alleyway, motioning them to follow.

"Ivan...do you know who built the Grand Common? It wasn't here three years ago." Ed's voice didn't waver as if he already knew the answer.

"Milotians, I guess..."

"No, do you know who made the arrangements for it, who commissioned it?"

"Um, I think is was Miss Julia...yes! As a matter of fact, it was one of the first things she did as Senator. She wanted us to have a grand place to remember what happened here...before."

He grit his teeth and moved his sight to his mechanic. "Winry, go with Ivan, I have to find Julia, I think she's planning something terrible and I have to stop her." He practically flung her toward Ivan.

"Hell no!" She shrugged off Edward's hand. "We're in this together!" There was no way she'd leave him now.

"Please, listen. Come with me, wait with my wife and children..." Ivan pleaded but Winry's face remained stoic.

Edward groaned and rolled his eyes. He knew he'd not convince the headstrong girl now. "Ivan, go home." He set his hand on the terrified man's shoulder. "Keep your family safe, don't worry or feel responsible for us."

"That's right!" Winry stepped to Edward's side. "We're going to make sure nothing bad happens this time, I promise."

"I hope so..." His eyes teared up. "You know where my home is if you change your mind." He smiled in defeat and scampered down the alleyway out of sight.

"You should have gone with him." Edward didn't like taking Winry to what felt like their impending doom, but he knew he'd not convince her otherwise.

"I know, but damned if I'm leaving you to do this alone." She smiled and took his hand. "But, Ed? Do you know what's going to happen?" They ran toward the funeral.

"Unfortunately...I do." His mouth turned into a disgusted snarl, he knew damned well what Julia had planned or made so she could use if she ever got backed into a corner...he only wished he hadn't underestimated the Senator's gall. He wished he hadn't been so naive to believe she'd overcome that lust for power she'd tasted three years earlier when she swallowed the last sanguine star-the last philosopher's stone the blood of Amestrian soldiers and Table City's secret transmutation circle created. After all, she'd seen first hand what making a philosopher's stone required and what that stone could do to a person.

* * *

The sniper positioned herself on the dingy fourth story roof of an old apartment building overlooking the Grand Common. Minutes earlier, she'd assembled her high powered rifle with telescopic sight and now her brown eyes tested the optics, making sure she had a good view of the podium where Marshall, Grumman and the other delegates would stand.

"How is Mustang so sure this is going to be a bloodbath?" Heymans brisk voice disturbed her calculation of the wind speed and distance, she had to set the weapon down and turn toward the hefty man who still wore civilian clothing.

"The General believes it's been too easy...the takeover." She turned toward her target once more and raised the gun so she could peer through the sight again. "And, this place for the funerals, this plaza is too damned _round._    I'm to take out the alchemist before they activate a circle."

"He's certain?"

"He's always right about these things...isn't he" She took up her firearm once moor and began pinpointing her mark.

"Yeah." He took off his newly acquired trench coat and slung it in the crook of his left arm.

"Shit." Riza swore so quietly, Breda almost didn't hear.

"Complications?"

"Yeah...Edward Elric." She followed the young man and woman as they ran quickly over the cobblestones, dashing through the crowds of soldiers and pushing their way to the front. She kept Edward's head in the cross hairs of the scope.

"He's going to either make it better or worse." Breda mentally added "... _Little Chief,"_ in Havoc's voice, causing a smile to spread across his face. He also thought to call his old buddy when this was all over.

* * *

The older man peddled down the new stone roadway toward the Grand Common. He adjusted his spectacles and smoothed his well-manicured whiskers. So glad the rain had stopped, he flicked up the collar of his brown trench coat and quickened his steps for something in his gut told him it was about to all come down and quickly.

As the man wandered into the crowd of Amestrian blue, it dawned on him that no Milotians attended the funeral. Odd, because their fellow comrades were be interred in the flames of their own funeral pyres, as is the tradition of Table City. "Don't they see something's wrong here?" He muttered out loud. Didn't Grumman have  _anyone_ with an iota of intelligence advising him?

A streak of blond hair whizzed past his right most peripheral vision and he turned his head to track the golden color washed in the sea of azure uniforms. Now was not the time to act aged, so he started off in a fast sprint to catch the blur running toward the podium. His strength and mass pushed all others out of his way as he sought the owners of the golden color but the crowd became too congested and irritated at his rude behavior, keeping him from moving forward.

"Hohenheim?" The familiar baritone voice broke through those cursing at him and at the blond blur for pushing them aside. The man turned to face General Mustang in the flesh.

"Uh...um" He knew his stuttering was painfully uncharacteristic of the late human philosopher's stone, but the General's icy black eyes always shook him to the core, they did ever since the first day they met and he begged his forgiveness for trying human transmutation. He laughed, thinking what a sight that must have been, his brother, a tiny crippled child in a wheelchair with this humongous man in a suit of armor crying like a baby and saying he was sorry.

"I thought you'd be halfway to Xing..." This last word, the General leaned in and whispered into the man's ear, " _Alphonse._ "

"Is it  _that_ bad?" He motioned to his face, the soft voice of the young man a sure giveaway to the old facade he wore, almost exactly the face of this father.

"I know for a fact Hohenheim passed away shortly after the promised day..." The General smiled. "I have very good sources." He placed his hand on the man's shoulder. "And no, it's not  _that bad._..it's very _good_ , actually." Mustang kept his voice so low, Alphonse could barely understand him, but he did know they couldn't speak openly at the moment.

"Brother just ran past." Alphonse's eyes darted to the podium, now obscured by many soldiers.

"You both are idiots." Mustang didn't remove his hand from Al's shoulder. If the young man  _had_ actually been Hohenheim, or was anyone else, he'd probably taken offense at being man handled in such a way _but_ Alphonse wasn't his father or any other soul. "You should have left."

"What's going to happen?" His aged face met that of the General's.

"Hopefully, nothing." Mustang could see right past those spectacles and the young eyes they hid. "But, Grumman wants to patch relations so badly, he won't listen. He's not an alchemist, but he should have learned from the past." Roy specifically thought of all the monsters Grumman had witnessed on the Promised Day.

"Then why are you here?"

"I'm the fail-safe." When Mustang removed his hand from Alphonse's shoulder, the younger man could clearly see the General, unlike the other officers in attendance, wasn't wearing any gloves. He didn't need to wear them anymore. The General saw the Truth, after all. He could transmute without a circle.

"I want to help." Alphonse realized that Mustang's most loyal subordinate, Riza Hawkeye was absent. This could only mean she was protecting him the best way she could and probably had both of them in her sniper sights at this moment.

"I don't think I could stop you if I wanted to." Roy smiled. "We need to keep your brother in check, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

"Edward? Do anything stupid...you're joking?" The General didn't miss Alphonse's sarcasm.

* * *

Julia followed Marshall and the others through the crowd at the Grand Common. As far as she could see, blue uniforms undulated and swarmed as if she gazed upon a woolen sea. Good. The more, the merrier. She also hoped that bastard, the Flame Alchemist, the one who she was told saved her three years ago by cauterizing her bleeding leg was here too. He killed Alphonse and she'd make him pay for that. She'd make them all suffer and give up their lives so she could liberate her people. No one knew, not even the former Prime Minister. Not one person had a clue save the few trusted ones she used to spread the rumors of death for today. Julia wasn't so foolish to think there would be no suspicion, after all, she was sure the Amestrian's also heard the warnings. It didn't matter. Her family's alchemy was _unique_ , after all and she'd taken such great care since the last fall of Milos not to show exact how she could use the science.

The young woman's turquoise eyes scanned the crowd once more and brilliant blond hair caught her attention. Thinking of Edward first, she soon realized this man was much taller and older. She dismissed him as one of the military but soon recognized the raven-haired man standing next to him as the very man she despised as much as his country. It pleased her that Mustang stood in the audience.

Yet, another golden movement took her attention to closer to the stage. Two sets of eyes burned into her, one set gold, the other blue. They pleaded with her silently. Edward and Winry. For a moment, she wished she had never written the mechanic. Things  _were_ going so well at the time, she just thought the young woman could train Ivan so he could take over the missing piece Mr. Gonzales left when he died. Her people needed automail. She sighed. Had she left it alone, Winry would still be in Resembool, most likely with Edward. And, Alphonse would most likely be safe in Xing.

Fuhrer Grumman began speaking.

Julia didn't pay any attention to his words and they wavered in her brain as insignificant mumbles. No doubt his speech writers spent all night preparing it, but he might as well have sung that Trinkhorner song she heard in the pub that night. Something about "uniting Milos and Amestris," and "the errors of the past would never happen again." Blah. Blah. Blah.

Marshall spoke next and although she respected the man, he was a necessary sacrifice in this, her bigger plan. She didn't pay attention to his words either, but she made a great effort to appear as though she was. As part of the Milotian delegation, she wasn't asked to speak. However, she was asked to join the traditional prayer as they lit the funeral pyres. Alchemists such as herself held religion as absurd. But she felt it hurtful to the memory of the fallen, to Ashley, to Alphonse if she didn't put her heart into the words she spoke in unison with the others. Marshall solemnly strode to the first pyre and lowered a torch. All the bodies were touching and the materials they lay upon had been treated with chemicals to help with their ignition and ensure that nothing but the larges bones remained. Soon, the flames rose higher and higher.

The temperature needed to reach at least two hundred and eighty degrees Celsius, but because the stones were still damp, she calculated the burn to go a little longer so as it reached three hundred degrees. Once the flames got that hot, the reaction would occur, one she had planned for so many years earlier but hoped she'd never have to use.

Something else she kept a dark secret and no one suspected. Seven hundred years of oppression did not allow her to solely rely on politicians and negotiations, so the young woman engineered a last ditch plan. Ever since she realized she could transmute without a circle, Julia voraciously studied alchemy. She practiced the science in silence for three years.

"Julia!" Edward's yell cut rudely through the solemness of the occasion. He tried to break through the crowd to get closer to the delegation, but his abruptness only caused suspicion in the soldiers and they held him at bay. Winry closely followed and she seemed to give as much as she got from those shoving her around.

She warned them. She told them to leave this place. A tremble of regret welled up in her stomach because she truly liked the young couple and wouldn't want any harm to come to them. Yet, it was their own fault that they didn't heed her words.

"The flames burned hot, they must be getting close to the correct temperature." Julia thought.

Just as she predicted, the pyres reached a temperature that started a chemical reaction in the mortar the cobblestones of the Grand Common were set. Several fizzing sparks ran from the fires along the grout lines in between the cobbles. The sparks gained speed and ran outward from the center of the common outward, causing the people on the ground to jump and lift their feet.

"Alphonse!" Mustang disregarded their secret and his voice carried concern and urgency.

"It's creating an array!" The younger Elric noticed it immediately, how the sparks only took certain intended paths. The sooty, burned mortar they left clearly indicated deliberate lines alchemists used for their transmutations. Fear welled within him as he realized they were almost in the middle and there was no way they'd be able to run out of the common before someone activated this array. "No!" He became nauseated with the further realization that Brother and Winry were trapped as well.

"Can you get me to the podium? Your brother and Miss Rockbell are close!" The General hoped to determine who the alchemist was that created the array, he was sure this person was among the Milotian delegation. He'd have to trust Hawkeye's skills and get close enough to let her know who her target was before said target activated this circle.

"Yeah, hold on!" Al didn't give the General much time as the raven-haired man wrapped his arms around his waist and the alchemist shot up into the air, landing squarely on the platform with the V.I.P.s.

"Julia!" Alphonse leapt toward the girl with the short-shorn strawberry blond hair. He didn't want to harm her, he just wanted to stop her from activating the array. Unfortunately, he stood in front of her, keeping her safe from Riza Hawkeye's bullet. The sniper cursed from behind her sight.

"Who are you?" She screamed yet she noticed something eerily familiar in the golden eyes of the middle aged man before her.

"It's me!" He took off his glasses. "Al. It's me."

"Liar. They said you were killed!" She knocked over the table to make room for her transmutation.

The crashing furniture shocked Grumman and Marshall from their malaise. The seasoned military men rushed forward to overcome Julia.

"Julia Crichton!" Grumman motioned and two soldiers grabbed the Senator from behind, holding her arms safely behind her. "What is the meaning of this?" He eyed the blonde man in front of him. "Who are you?"

"Hohenheim, sir." Mustang stepped forward, the name leaving his lips in a confident baritone.

"The Elrics father?" The old man adjusted his glasses. "I thought he died and was buried in Resembool?"

"Um," Al had to remember to lower his voice. "Rumors and incorrect conjectures." He turned to face the Fuhrer. "I'm very much alive. I was seeking my sons." He continued to keep his body in front of Julia's. The sound of laughter interrupted them. Julia didn't bother to fight those holding her, she just laughed.

"A family reunion?" She spat. "Alphonse is dead!" She glared at Mustang. "He's the one who killed him!" She stopped laughing. "The Amestrian military killed Milos!"

"I'm still alive!" Edward's voice piped up from the curious crowd. He still couldn't get through the soldiers to reach Julia. He couldn't believe his eyes, surely this was not his father? "You have to get her out of here! She's made an array!"

"Calm down!" Grumman knew he had to restore order, his men already had their hands on their weapons when the array burnt beneath their feet. "She can cause no harm now!" He eyed Julia as she stood restrained.

"Excuse me!" Prime Minister Marshall couldn't stand by and let them manhandle Julia. She hadn't done anything. He noticed no movement from her the seconds before the cobblestones caught fire. "Exactly what did she do? She didn't perform any alchemy!"

"Oh, Marshall. I don't need you to come to my aid." Her smile turned up on each corner. "AND, I don't need to use my HANDS to transmute!" She began laughing once more.

"Julia, no!" Alphonse understood too late as the tormented girl brought her foot down on the platform.

Edward saw it too.

Mustang heard the familiar lyrical ring which sounded each time he brought his hands together to start a transmutation...as Edward used to be able to do as well.

* * *

"What's happening?" Fuery could see the red light all the way from their post across from the Common. "Miss Hawkeye?"

"Damnit!" That man is STILL in the way." She couldn't get a clear shot at the girl, the one Roy moved his eyes toward, signaling to her the identity of the alchemist. "We've got to move! Now!" She shouldered her firearm and darted for the door. Riza knew she'd be no use to Mustang or anyone else unless she could get a clear shot.

A blue electric spark traveled from Julia's brown boot to the podium floor and then swathed the structure in a web of light. Once the spark hit the black soot of the new array, its light changed to crimson. This eerie crimson glow followed the lines of the transmutation circle, black lines changing red.

* * *

"Ed?" Winry already knew they were in trouble.

"We've gotta run. NOW!" He pulled her arm as they tried to push their way back through the crowd to outrun the reaction that was about to trap them.

It was no use.

The circle was complete. Deconstruction began.


	18. The Toll You Pay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roy didn't need to hear it twice, he ran past the Elrics without a word, hoping with all his might that there would be no more funerals in Milos that day.

Alphonse couldn't take his eyes from Julia.  Her features transformed from insane to purely maniacal and she didn't cease laughing-evidence that once again, she succumbed to the philosopher's stone within her.  The two soldiers holding her became frightened by the blue light and the alchemical reaction going on around them so they released her and jumped from the stage into the crowd.  As soon as she was free, the girl continued kicking the tables off the raised stage, clearing the way for whatever she'd planned.  Prime Minister Marshall, Grumman and the others stood in shock but not quite understanding that their lives were at risk.

"Go get Edward!"  Mustang roared.  "Get them out of here!"  He rushed at Julia, "I'll stop her!"

Al didn't waste any time.  In front of the Fuhrer's grave stare, he rocketed high into the air just as the blue alchemical light started to glow then change ominously red as the morning sky grew dark with clouds.  The red glow reminded him of the rebound that took his body so many years earlier and he was determined not to let that happen to anyone, especially Winry or Brother.  He easily spotted two golden heads running among a sea of blue uniforms and he descended toward them.

"Grab hold!"  The younger Elric outstretched his arm.

"What?"  Edward couldn't believe his eyes, as his father levitated before him – Van Hohenheim, in the flesh.  "Dad?"

"Do I sound like Dad, you idiot?"  He couldn't hide his annoyance.  "Just grab hold!"

"'Bout time!"  Edward realized this man was his brother in disguise and then wasted no time in grabbing Al's warm hand with his left then Winry's wrist with his right. Alphonse tried to drag all three of them up and out of the reach of the ongoing transmutation around them.  Up they went, Al, then Ed, but as their human chain rose, the mechanic anchored them down.  Ed watched in horror as the red spark of deconstruction took hold of Winry's foot and slowly traveled up her legs and then her body.

"No!"

"Ed! It's too late! Let her go!"  Al couldn't believe he was telling his brother this, to leave Winry so he could save himself from getting caught in the reaction.  "I can't save her without you!"

"What's happening, Ed?"  Winry's face twisted in horror upon seeing the soldiers around her also squirming as the red light moved slowly up their legs, anchoring them to the spots they stood.

"Let her go, Brother!"  He didn't want to cry but couldn't help seeing the hurt and turmoil in his brother's amber eyes.  This took him back to that morning's dream, of his brother grasping out, trying to reach his soul and gaining nothing but air.

"Fuck!"  Ed had to choose.  He knew Alphonse was right, if he didn't let go of Winry, he'd be caught in the transmutation too and couldn't help Al save everyone.  The leather straps of the gauntlet dug into his fingers as he gripped her hand tightly and looked into her eyes.  He saw shear terror like a stormy blue sea in a hurricane. Even in the depth of Briggs when she was Kimblee's hostage, Winry faced down their opponents with a brave face and clear, determined eyes.  But now, now he only saw mortification.  He recognized this look, he'd seen it in her before during Al's convalescence in Resembool.

Winry suffered from nightmares back then.  A lot of people did, although only a tiny few really knew why.  They all dreamed of the Promised Day when their souls were torn from their bodies and sucked into Father.  Ed hated it because sometimes, after a really bad dream, the girl awoke screaming.  She never wanted to talk about it but after one long night with no sleep, he finally coerced a confession from her: as she slept, she relived the pain of leaving her body and the utter anguish, helplessness and sadness her roaming soul felt. It took months for her to stop having those dreams.

He wouldn't let her go through that alone again.

"We'll work together, Al, on Julia from the _inside_!"  Edward smirked.

"Ed?"  Al wasn't quite sure what his brother meant.  He sure as hell wasn't going to let Ed or Winry's souls get sucked into the senator either.

"Like Kimblee! If that jackass can do it, so can I!" Edward stared directly into his younger brother's eyes as his fingers unlatched from Al's protective grasp.

Alphonse understood and didn't like it one bit.

"Brother! No!"  He watched in horror as Edward seemed to float in slow motion to the ground next to Winry.  As soon as Ed's feet touched the stone, the red light took hold of him.  Edward only smiled and embraced Winry, comforting her before they both lost their souls.

"Go stop her, Al!"  He put his hand on the mechanic's head, an old habit used not just for soothing _her_ but calming his _own_ nerves as well.

"We know you can do it!"  Winry yelled, feeling she needed to reassure Alphonse despite the her own dire situation.  She slowly turned to Ed and planted her face in his chest and he pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her as if he could protect her from alchemy with his own flesh.  Now that she found him again and they could be together, she didn't want to die.  She didn't want to feel her soul stolen again, but now that Edward was with her, all her fear disappeared.  They'd go through this together.

"Winry.  You have to focus, it will be hard, but, I've also done this before... I know you can too."  He thought of the time he charged at Pride after turning himself into a singular philosopher's stone and his soul entered the homunculus in order to defeat him.

"What do you mean?"  She looked up at him, her chin still on his sternum.

"We can't stop what's going to happen to us now, it's too late.  But, we can work on Julia, from _within._..from within her."  He grinned more thinking about the real Hohenheim, his dad, having a million souls inside his body and how he embraced these individuals – every one of them – instead of trying to purge out the undesirables as Father did with his Sins.  "Focus on her, focus on communicating with her... she'll have to listen!"

"I'll try... Ah!" She cried out as the transmutation worked its way up her body and the familiar pain began.  She clutched her heart as if she could keep hold of her spirit and at the same time, she felt Edward's body tense up, no doubt from his own pain.  "It, hurts."  She tried to keep it together so he'd not worry.

"I know."  Edward grunted.  He felt his heart beating abnormally and his chest began to ache.  It wasn't the worst pain he'd ever felt – more of a mild annoyance.  But, he'd dealt with horrific trauma to his body and was sure his nerves grew used to it over the years.  Winry hadn't.  "Hold on to me."  He felt the girl's arms wrap around his waist and cinch him tight.  Then, his vision filled with red light and he felt nothing but dread and despair.  Ed only hoped that at least one of them could keep it together long enough in their soul-state to help Alphonse.

The youngest Elric in the guise of his middle-aged father, saw the couple fall to their knees together, still clutching each other tightly as brilliant pink-red lights shot from their bodies and flew toward the center of the circle.  Hundreds of the same soul lights soared from the people around them as well.  Having their mind-body links severed by alchemical destruction, all these anguished spirits became the human ingredients to construct a philosopher's stone. In this case, the stone was the body of Julia Crichton.

"Ed...no."  He flew higher to view the Common.  "Winry."  Al's heart ached for them.  But he knew he could save them.  He just needed the General.

Alphonse resisted the urge deep within his soul for revenge.  Instead, he visited his knowledge of alchemy and alkahestry and in an instant came up with a plan, a long shot to save them all.  His gaze shifted to the center of the array, the only safe place inside the transmutation where those who didn't run when the transmutation began, stood in horror as the Amestrian army fell to the ground, dead.

Mustang stood protectively between Fuhrer Grumman and Julia as a the gunshot echoed through the now silent Grand Common.  Riza Hawkeye's impeccable aim hit its mark, albeit late.  The bullet struck the center of Julia's forehead just as the last soul filled her body.  The force of the strike sent her head backwards for a minute and when she righted herself, she stood facing the direction of the shot as the projectile exited slowly from her forehead and dropped to the ground.

"Too late!"  She yelled and opened her eyes, now no longer turquoise blue, but the same glowing pink color as the souls she devoured.  She stomped her foot and a vibration traveled along the ground and picked up speed until it found the four story building and the current location of Mustang's team.  The souls within her body combined with the now completed transmutation multiplied her alchemical powers and enabled her non-reliance on equivalent exchange. The building collapsed in a heap of gray and brown debris clouds. Julia's glowing red eyes met the void-black eyes of Roy Mustang.  "Anyone you _knew_?"

"Bitch!"  Mustang didn't have time to think about his crew, or Riza - he reacted.  Raising his right, un-gloved hand, he snapped his fingers and a ball of flames surrounded Julia.  He readied himself to blast her a second time when the old alchemist lowered his body between the two.  "Move! Now!"  Roy's guttural baritone sent chills up and down Alphonse's spine for the second time in twenty-four hours.

"Stop!"  He turned to the General.  "I'll take care of this!"  He turned his body to face his lover, as she laughed amid the dying flames.  Her scorched frame morphing back into a healthy body.

"You can't take care of your _sons_ , just how are you going to _take care of me?"_ She eyed the Alphonse impostor incredulously and readied herself to wipe him off the stage in a bloody smear.

" _Julia!"_ A screeching voice rung through her brain.   _"Stop!"_

"Who said that?"  She lowered her hands before transmuting and began to look around.  Mustang, Marshall, Grumman and this golden-haired man claiming to be Alphonse stood silent and confused.

" _Don't hurt anyone else!"_   A second, more feminine voice answered her.  She put her hands over her ears.

"Stop fooling around, _Hohenhiem,_ do something before I do!"  Mustang growled.  "Now's your chance!"

Alphonse didn't understand what Julia was hallucinating about, but suspected the sounds of all the souls in her had finally been heard.  He knew he only had seconds.  "Mustang!"  He yelled over his shoulder.  "Did you study the arrays used in the Promised Day?"  He hoped the General's memory was fresh.

"Of course I did!"  Mustang grew ever impatient with the prodigy and desperately wanted to run toward the ruins of the destroyed building to find his subordinates.

"Can you scorch a reverse human transmutation circle?"  He hoped he could.

"What?"  Roy's mind began reeling over all the alchemical arrays he had memorized. He located the very one that the Elric's father had taken years and years to create by depositing his own blood and some of the trapped souls all over the country of Amestris.  The one that Scar and his fellow Ishvalans had finished in time for the shadow of the lunar eclipse to encircle.  "I know it by heart."  The General uttered so softly, no one heard.  He took a deep breath and hoped that his flames could cover the whole Common without injuring any of the bodies.

" _I thought you didn't want any more bloodshed!"_

"Ed?"  Julia pushed her hands around her ears harder as she fell to her knees.  "You are just one of the many, how?"  In her years of studying her family's alchemy books and her father's notes, she knew that it was theoretically possible for human souls to inhabit one body and thus, creating a living stone.  Yet, she never in her wildest dreams thought that those souls could remain sentient and could communicate.

" _That's really Alphonse, Julia! Don't kill him, like you did us!"_

"No."  That voice was unmistakably Winry.  "Get out! Get out of my head!"  She screamed at the ground.

" _We're going no where!  You've got us forever Julia! Us and all these soldiers!"_

She started hearing the yells and moans of the souls inside her, the souls of all the bodies strewn inside her transmutation circle.

" _Speak up!  Tell her that she'll never stop hearing you!"_ Winry urged the others on.

"Stop it!"  The former senator brought her head down hard on the ground.

"Do it now!"  Alphonse screamed as Roy brought his hands together creating the clear tonal ring that proceeded his transmutations now.  He brought his hands down on the stage and searing flames, like that of a lit fire cracker ran down and hit the cobblestones and then etched their own array on top of the Julia's.  Al leapt down to the stone, clasped his own hand together and brought them down just as Mustang's array was complete.

" _I don't want to die!"_

" _It hurts!  Make it stop hurting!"_

" _Mother!  Father!  Help me!"_

" _My children!  I'll never see them!"_

" _The pain!  The pain!"_

" _Oh god!  Am I really dead?  Someone help me!"_

" _Do you hear us, Julia!?"_ Edward's soul screamed. _"We'll never stop.  You can use our souls all you want, but you'll hear every last one of us until we are all gone and your power is useless!"_

"Everyone still alive, move out of the center, you need to move now!"  Alphonse began running as the array glowed red. He was joined by Mustang, grabbing the collars of stunned Marshall and Grumman who soon joined him.  The General shoved them outside the circle and they stood on the sidelines as the stage disintegrated and Julia fell to the stone floor, still clutching her ears and her head on the ground.

"No!"  She couldn't believe how loud their voices rang through her head.  Julia knew that unless she gained control over them, she'd go insane before she could use their energy.  She began the calculations of her next transmutation when the pain struck.  She screamed.

"What's happening?"  Grumman straightened his spectacles and leaned in to get a better view.

"Reverse human transmutation."  Mustang spoke without emotion.

"The souls are being ripped from her."  Alphonse didn't like seeing Julia in so much pain, but he had to save his brother and Winry.  He knew the array Mustang overlaid on the cobblestones wouldn't kill the girl, but what was about to happen may.  The younger Elric made his way over to unmoving forms of his brother and Winry. He knelt by their bodies.

" _You're too late, Julia."_ Winry chided.  " _Alphonse is freeing us!"_

"No!"  She couldn't believe all her hard work and years of planning crumbled before her.  She felt a pain, like that of a knife slashing her skin as each of her stolen souls escaped her body.  One by one, the soldiers left her, their red soul lights soaring high into the air, soaring among the black clouds before finally descending to their bodies. Julia had not detained them long enough for their silver threads, the ethereal chains which kept them anchored to their mind was severed by her alchemy.  She coughed and fell to the ground as the last soul exited.

Alphonse knelt down, then lovingly placed both of his hands on his two best friends lifeless forms.  The youngest Elric watched as others around them began to cough and stir from their almost eternal slumber.  Looking up at the darkened sky, he marveled at two beautifully bright lights soaring toward him and then crash silently into the two bodies at his knees.  Al felt the warmth return to his brother's shoulder directly under his hand.  Winry coughed and her clenched fists slowly uncurled. Edward shot up ready to fight. 

"Where is she?"

"Settle down, Brother."  Al tugged on his wrist, pulling his exhausted brother down to a sitting position next to him.  "Winry needs you."  He gingerly pulled her up and into Edward's lap as the girl struggled to breathe.

"C'mon, Win, take a deep breath!" Edward held her head in his hands as she stopped sputtering and took an enormous intake of air.

"Ahhhh!"  Winry sat up quickly as she inhaled and took in the surroundings, not fully believing she still lived.  "Did, did we stop her?"  She leaned her tired body against Ed.

"Yeah.  We did."  Ed's voice carried bleak sadness because he realized before Winry and even Alphonse that the reverse transmutation was over for them, but just beginning for Julia.  He gazed toward the center of the array, where the stage and podium once stood.

"No."  Alphonse quickly caught up. All three of them took a deep breath as they saw the events unfold in the center of the reverse array.

The cobblestones disappeared and in their place, lay an enormous, closed gray eye.  Suddenly, the giant ocular object opened to reveal several shades of gray within a large iris.  Julia stood in the center of the eye's black pupil.  She looked around, not totally understanding the peril about her. Bright red sparks started to crackle and shoot upward from all points of the array not hidden by this monstrous eye. Without any sound or warning, streams of black arms reached from the eye, all of them grabbing and grasping on to the female alchemist.

"What?"  She couldn't fathom her transmutation went wrong, and having not noticed the form of the Mustang's reverse array, Julia stood totally perplexed as the black hands slowly pulled her into the blackness of the eye.

Alphonse couldn't watch. He looked away as Julias body disappeared, the eyelid closed and just as quickly as it all appeared, the eye, the array, everything was gone. The dark clouds parted and beams of white sunlight seared through, one reflecting off the golden eyes of Edward Elric.

"Al..." Winry struggled to stand, and finally rose with Ed's assistance. She outstretched a shaky hand to the younger Elric and helped him stand as well. "I'm so sorry." Despite his beard, glasses and aged face, the mechanic saw nothing but warm, kind, young Alphonse.

"It's not over... is it?"  He looked at his brother who wore a scowl.  Edward of all people knew what happens next, what happens after an alchemist traveled into God's domain and the toll the Truth extracted.  Ed knew this toll could be as obscure as the General's eyesight or Izumi's organs or as obvious as his leg and his arm or... Al's body.  He really didn't want to know what the Truth stole from Julia.

"What does he mean?"  Winry clutched onto the hem of Ed's sleeve.  She turned her head to look upon the hundreds of dazed soldiers.

Before either of the Elrics could respond, a brilliant flash of light exploded from the former center of the array, temporarily blinding them all. When the bright blur faded, the light disappeared, leaving behind a small form, kneeling where the stage once stood.

"What are you waiting for, cowards!"  Mustang screamed at the lower ranking men around him.  "Someone detain her!"  He winced as he peered over the soldiers, yes, that was Julia just sitting there.  Roy also understood _intimately_ what had just passed.  He knew Truth extracted something of Julia, but he was taking no chances.  Several men, fully recovered from having their souls returned ran toward the frail girl and hoisted her to her feet.  They walked her toward Mustang and the other dignitaries.

"C'mon!"  Edward pulled Winry toward the small crowd encircling Julia and Alphonse followed.  They pushed their way to see the General and Grumman face their former foe.

"Is she still a threat?"  Grumman adjusted his spectacles, knowing that something was not quite right with the senator, but also still leery after witnessing her powers.

"Julia Crichton!"  Mustang strode up to the girl, whose head hung low, staring at her feet.  He didn't want to still be here, he longed to run toward the building Julia destroyed and check on his subordinates.  However, he owed a duty to the Fuhrer and the soldiers here.  So, he took his right hand and lifted her chin so that he could see into her eyes, eyes that returned to their unique shade of blue.  Gone.  That invisible light that shone in every human's eyes, that light that signified their existence, that light that some called a _soul_ was gone.

The toll Julia Crichton paid to the Truth was the worst price any of the alchemist familiar with human transmutation had ever seen.  She paid with her human soul.

"I'm so sorry, Julia."  Al whispered to himself, but Ed and Winry heard him as plan as day.

"You did nothing to make her do this."  Edward tried to reassure his brother.  He knew Al also saw the girl's lifeless eyes, like the glass eyes of a porcelain doll.

"Will one of you tell me?  What happened to her?"  Winry felt tears well up in her eyes, part angry at the brothers for understanding something she did not and part sad for her friend, a friend obviously hurt in some way the mechanic couldn't figure out.

"Winry."  Alphonse held her hand and spoke calmly.  "It's like what happened to me and Brother."  He could tell by the widening of her blue eyes that she began to understand he referred to the night they transmuted their mother.  "...Like what happened to me, except..."

"Instead of his body,"  Edward finished his brother's sentence.  "She's lost her soul.  Her body is on this side and her soul...is on the other."  He let his head fall.

Mustang stood back in disgust.  He couldn't help but feel it a tragic waste, all of this was a waste.  The death of the Milotian citizens and Amestrian soldiers who played as marionettes of Cretan terrorists was a waste.  Julia's tragic short life and ultimate undoing also seemed a pathetic waste.  He straightened his jacket and organized a plan to rescue his crew.  Turning to a group of soldiers, he spoke.  "Form a rescue team! Now!"  The men obeyed and stood and saluted the General signaling they were ready.  "Go, assist those in the destroyed building!"  The men ran toward the collapsed shell.

"Mustang?"  Grumman placed his hand on the young General's shoulder. "You go, go make sure they are safe."

"Uh, right, sir."  Roy didn't need to hear it twice, he ran past the Elrics without a word, hoping with all his might that there would be no more funerals in Milos that day.

_…to be continued._


	19. Epilogue:  Tonight We Ride

 

 

[" **Tonight** **we ride**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7osmyDK1U9A)  
[ **You'll fight or hide..."** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7osmyDK1U9A)

**...** **Matthew Sweet,** Kimi Ga Suki

 

"...Did...did it work?"   The weakened voice piped.

"Shhhh."

"C'mon...tell me, 'cause I'm feeln' dizzy..."

Thunk!

"It wears him out every time."

"Alphonse, help me get him to the cot... damn, he's heavy!  I wish he were _little_ again."

"I heard that Bastard!"  He boasted.  Even though exhausted after healing the sniper, Edward's heart swelled (as well as his head inflated) with pride that he wasn't a pipsqueak anymore.

Riza felt the bones in her legs realign and snap back into place.  It didn't hurt, but the sensation of re-knitting tibia, fibula and femur along with the popping sound they made unsettled her.  She gazed up at the shining blue sky and marveled because it shone so much more beautiful now than when Julia's transmutation almost created a philosopher's stone.  She exhaled in relief, knowing both Breda and Fuery had survived the building collapse and even though she fell two stories and shattered her legs, Edward had been able to get to her in time to save her.

"How are you feeling?"  His smooth voice carried genuine concern that warmed her heart.  Mustang's dark eyes sparkled as he met her gaze and peered down as she rested on the cot.

"Surprisingly good."  She tried to sit up but felt his warm hand on her shoulder.

"No.  You're going to the hospital with all the other injured... just to be safe."  She knew she'd not win that fight and relented, laying back down.

"Right, Sir."  She heard his small chuckle at her formality.  Riza turned her head to see Edward splayed out on another cot next to her as Winry watched over him, the mechanic holding his hand and removing his metal gauntlets.  Another memory flooded her tired brain, one of Edward sharing coffee as she cleaned the filthy gun he just returned.  She knew back then he loved his mechanic and right now, Riza could tell from the way the blonde gently tended to him, that the girl most definitely loved him back.

She smiled, content for now that the young couple finally could be together.  

 

* * *

 

The seasonal rains brought with them a cooler summer breeze.  This sweet wind wafted through the small courtyard and rumpled the leaves on the fruit trees, disrupting a resting butterfly who took to his blue wings and flew among the humans relaxing on that nice morning.

"Maria, is she able to talk?"  Winry sat beside Alphonse on the worn wicker settee, shaded by a lemon tree.  She took a sip of her sweet iced tea and looked hopefully at the older woman who smiled back.

"Sometimes."  She placed a tall glass of iced tea in Julia's pale hand.  "Please drink."  The girl obediently took small sips of the cool liquid as her former housekeeper sat in a wooden rocking chair and crossed her hands on her lap.  "She tells me when she's tired and she goes to bed."  Maria picked up her own drink.  "And she takes care of her own needs, I just have to tell her sometimes to bathe and eat."

"Al?"  Winry noticed the young man's sad eyes as he watched Julia blissfully enjoying her drink.  She was very thankful he was able to restore his sweet face from that of his father's, she didn't like looking at Hohenheim yet hearing Al's soft voice.  It reminded her too much of the time his soul was still in armor.  "Is her soul, really gone?"

"It's hard to say."  He looked at the girl more closely, trying to find that spark in her that they all had, that one thing that made human's human – their soul.  He didn't see it, he tried to feel her using the techniques learned in Xing and felt nothing.  "She breathes, she eats, she sleeps, but she doesn't have the light in her eyes that she used to..."  Winry placed a comforting hand on Al's and squeezed.

"Don't be too sad, children."  Maria's cheerful voice tried to reassure them.  "I will make sure that she lives a good life here and her needs are met."  She looked lovingly at the girl she decided to raise like her own child.  "Ivan and his family are helping me too."

"Still..."  Al sighed and placed his free hand on top of Winry's and patted it.  "Brother and I've decided that we will find a way, a way to restore her."

"Mr. Alphonse, no!"  Maria interjected.  She didn't know a lot about alchemy, but from what the young Amestrians told her, she knew there would be a terrible cost in trying to save Julia's soul.

"Don't, fret, please.  We'll find a way to do this without paying a toll or using any souls in the process.  We've only scratched the surface of alchemy as everyone knows it.  Our own theory still needs tested, we just need to find a way."

"What theory is that?"  Winry didn't like the idea of Ed and Al messing with the gate anymore, she'd rather they not even talk about it.

"Well, equivalent exchange says in order to get something, something of equal value must be lost.  But we think that if we give more of ourselves, you get more back – say, you take ten and add one of yourself you give eleven... the original is increased and..."

"Al..."  Winry made a motion of waiving her hand over her head, this information made no sense to her.  "You are as bad as your brother with this alchemy nonsense."  She sighed.  "If you just give one hundred percent of yourself, you'll have nothing left!  I'm not going to let both of you do that!"

"Well, it's only a theory."  He mumbled then smiled at both Winry and Maria who had perplexed looks on their faces, trying to understand him.  "Yet, there are things about alkahestry that I still need to learn and might be able to help her.  I have to believe that."  He took a sip of his tea.

"Speaking of Edward, just where is he?  I haven't seen him since dinner yesterday.  He knows my train is leaving at noon."  Winry raised an angry eyebrow.

"He wanted to pay a visit to Captain Hawkeye and the others before he left."  Al sighed, knowing that his older brother was up to something, having only mumbled that information to him as he was leaving early this morning.

"Well, he better make it."  She grit her teeth.

"Do you two want to see something amazing?"  Maria spoke softly as the blue-winged butterfly landed on the hand that held her tea and began lapping up molecules of sugar from the sweet liquid that had spilled there.  The two young people nodded.

Smack!

Alphonse and Winry stared wide eyed as the old woman squashed the butterfly with her free hand.  The poor creature lay mangled and dead as she cupped it in that hand and set her tea down on a side table.

"Don't worry."  She winked and walked over to Julia, taking away and setting aside the quiet girl's glass and gently placing the now wilted insect in her now cupped hands.  Julia smiled.

Before anyone uttered another word, the gentle breeze carried with it the soft ring of alchemy.  Alphonse watched in amazement as blue sparks trickled from the girl's hands and around the butterfly.  He didn't see her clap or do anything to activate the transmutation.  She just smiled and lovingly held the creature.  When the lights died down Julia held up her hands to Maria as if proud of her accomplishment.

The blue butterfly moved its wings and flew away, joining others already waiting in the fruit trees.

"Not.  Possible."  Al couldn't believe it.  Even without a soul, Julia was able to do what alchemists never could, what he and Edward failed – bring life back the dead.

"I noticed her the other day doing this."  Maria gave Julia back her sweet drink and the girl began sipping happily.  The housekeeper sat down and started rocking. "She keeps on bringing back the houseflies I've swatted!"  She chuckled.

"Al?"  Winry gave the blond a quizzical look.

"Maria?  Does, does my brother know?"

"Oh yes, he we here early this morning when she restored some of those flies!  He told me not to show another soul...except you."

"Really?"  He raised his own eyebrow and finished off his own tea.  Ed most certainly was up to something.

 

* * *

 

Roy Mustang couldn't remember if she favored lilacs or tulips.  In his worried mind he only could recall she like an early spring flower, so he purchased a bunch of both and hurried to the Table City hospital.  He felt he'd spent way too much time at this medical facility for his liking and was glad that in a day or so, Riza, the last of his crew to be hospitalized, would be released and they'd be on their way back to Central.  It really amazed him that they survived the building collapse, Breda and Fury jumping to the adjoining structure only by a last push in the rear from Riza getting them clear.  Unfortunately, the sniper missed the ledge and fell in the alleyway injuring herself gravely.  She would have been released earlier if not for a fierce concussion, the head injury something Edward wasn't able to heal as he concentrated on her mangled legs.  Oh, yeah.  Edward owed him a report and his notes.  He wasn't about to let the former alchemist leave Table City without handing it over.  Good thing Elric said he'd be at the hospital this morning.

The General made his way into the crowded building, still reeling from with wounded Cretans from the explosion in the caverns below as well as those wounded in the militia versus Amestrian army conflict.  He hoped that today marked the end of the violence here in Milos and was glad that Marshall and Grumman had sat down together and signed a non-aggression treaty.  The terms of the treaty stated that Table City could retain their democratic system of government, however, it would remain an Amestrian territory and outpost.  The people in the city became citizens of Amestris and could enjoy travel and trade freely with their new mother country.  Their militia could join the Amestrian military.

Grumman had other _special_ provisions as well.  First, Julia Crichton would remain in the care of her former housekeeper who would be paid a small stipend for such care.  She would also be monitored periodically by state alchemists and if any of her destructive alchemy resurfaced, she would be incarcerated immediately in the Alchemist's Wing of Central Prison.  Second, and this wasn't documented in the Table City/Amestris Peace Treaty and only those with "need to know" clearance such as Mustang were aware – Alphonse Elric would be allowed to travel back Xing for his studies but upon completion, he would report to Mustang and remain contracted to the military for a period of five years.  Alphonse's duties would be at the General's discretion.  Third, Major Edward Elric, retired former Fullmetal Alchemist would provide Mustang with his current research to be published by the Military Press.  Edward would also remain contracted to the army for a period of five years upon his brother's return from Xing.

Roy thought it amusing that the last two special provisions came directly after Grumman's visit to Riza Hawkeye's hospital room.  " _They must have had some talk,"_  the General thought as he hurried to the same room.  He gently tugged the heavy door open and smiled at Riza.  She sat up in her bed, a bandage wrapped tightly around her head.  Across from her sat Breda and Fuery, both bandaged and smiling like idiots.

"Sir!"  Both men stood at attention and saluted, albeit with smirking faces.

"C'mon, at ease."  Mustang sat in a chair next to Riza and held the flowers out to her.  He noticed her hand rested upon a light brown manila envelope.  "I hear that you'll be released tomorrow"

"Yes, I'm looking forward to getting back home."  Riza took the blooms and inhaled their sweet scent.  "These are lovely."  Setting the flowers down on her lap, she picked up the package with her slender hands and offered it to the General.  "Edward was here earlier, it seems he's anxious to leave Table City as well."

Mustang took the brown envelope.  Handwritten in the Pipsqueak's messy script was, "Happy Now?  Bastard."  The General chuckled and opened the package.  Inside was a book, an alchemist's _journal._ " Elric's field notes." He muttered as he removed the brown paper bound book and began leafing through.  His happy countenance slowly morphed from elated to furious.  He read the title of the tome out loud: "XINGESE LOVEMAKING STYLES, ILLUSTRATED."

Breda and Fuery no longer could contain their laughter.  Their faces red, both men doubled over in hysterical laughter at the General's expense.

"Son of a Bitch!"  Roy couldn't restrain his anger.  That little shit had given him this pornography instead of his research.  "I'll find that little squirt and drag him back to Central in irons!"  He almost ripped a page from the book but a small, yet firm hand stopped him.

"Sir, please look at the margins and spaces in the book.  Aren't _those_ Ed's notes?"  Hawkeye's killer eyesight caught the former alchemist's scrawls and scribbles on the page.

"Yes..." He began filing through pages and noticed immediately that there was code, an alchemist's code.  A code he'd have to decipher.  "Little shit!"  He let the book fall to the floor and he stood, anger plastered across his face.  "Where is he?"

Breda straightened up and wiped a tear from his eye.  "Train station... he said he was leaving at noon."

"I'll be back."  Mustang scooped up the Xingese book, tucked it in his overcoat and turned to say a silent goodbye to the sniper.  He ignored the men who were still giggling and he left for the Table City Depot.  "I'm going to get that kid to translate this before he leaves."  He may have to punch him a little too.

 

* * *

 

Winry plunked the last of her equipment on the terminal floor as railroad employees scampered to collect the boxes, boxes heavy with automail machinery and parts.  Alphonse and Ivan had helped her get it all to the station and all had been lovingly boxed and marked to be shipped back to Resembool and Rush Valley. She made sure to separate the tools Mr. Garfiel loaned her from those Granny let her borrow.  The mechanic smiled and shielded her eyes from the mid-day sun and hoped that one day, she'd be the one to own all these types of equipment and wouldn't have to borrow them.  She scanned the large depot, hoping to see that plucky short golden mop of Edward's hair as he bobbed in between the crowd toward her.

"Al, he knows, right?"

"Brother will be here, don't worry."  Alphonse straightened his light linen suit jacket and donned a new light felt fedora.

"He better."  Winry wriggled her fingers, trying to admire her engagement ring without Al noticing.  He smiled at her as he saw her do this.

Winry hugged Ivan and assured him that his skills were good enough to operate the automail shop without her.  At least, he could make the automail.  She'd made a deal with a local surgeon to do the port implants if needed.

Before long, all the equipment was loaded on the east bound train and the two had to walk to the passenger terminal to board.  They waved to Ivan as they left.

"At least we'll travel together for a while, beats sitting on a train for hours alone."  She knew that Edward was going west again, he said he had some unfinished business before he could return.  Winry didn't like that, but Edward's proposal and the ring consoled her.  She supposed she could wait a few more weeks.  Besides, there was work to do in Rush Valley and no doubt projects had piled up in her absence.

"What do you think you're doing?"  The brash voice carried over the heads of the other travelers.

"Huh?"  Winry turned around to see those grinning teeth, the amber stare that should cause fear in his enemies.  It just made her blush.  Edward stood inches away from her, evidently having sneaked up on her and Alphonse.

"This is the wrong train."  He gently took her elbow and winked at his brother.  Alphonse tipped his fedora to the couple.

"No it's not.  Goes straight to Resembool..."  Winry looked to Al for help but he just smiled, knowingly.

"You two have a great trip."  The younger Elric breached the distance between himself and his family and hugged both his brother and surrogate sister tightly.  "I'll make sure your stuff gets to Resembool safely and then I'll be off to Xing."

"What?"  Still perplexed, Winry didn't understand.

"Write me at the palace, Ling will get it to me, but he'll probably read it first, so... you know... nothing you don't want HIM to know too."  He giggled thinking Winry and Brother probably would have a lot of stuff they didn't want Ling to know about soon.  "Take care!"  He whisked himself away from them, picked up his suitcase and boarded the train.

"Edward!"  Winry shrugged her arm from him.  "This is too my train!"

"Nope."  He grinned again mischievously.  "I decided something and I hope you don't get too mad at me for it."  Ed's face became more serious.  "I've decided that I don't want to travel again... unless... unless."

"What? Just spit it out."  She was getting irritated.

"Unless you come with me."

In all their years together, in all the hardships the brothers endured, Winry always stayed behind.  She understood, at the end of it all, their reasoning: to keep her safe and to keep her from worrying about their burdens.  She fought so hard over those years to show them that she needed to know, that she needed to be involved and it wasn't their choice about her caring or not caring, it was hers.  Now, she stood staring down those familiar golden eyes that always shone with fierce determination and she felt her anger drain away through the sandal soles of her feet.  Never had they ever asked her to join them.  Yet, here Edward stood, as confident as his sixteen-year-old self and asking her to come with him on whatever adventure lay before them.  She had work in Rush Valley.  She had clients demanding her attention.  How could he just expect her to drop everything?

"Ok."  Her angry eyes softened and she offered him her hand.

"Really?"  He took her hand and interlaced his fingers with hers, both of them enjoying the electricity that shot from their digits. "I... I... I mean, I expected more fight?"

"Ed, you're an idiot."  She smiled.  "Now that I have you, I don't think I can let you leave my sight... you might get killed or something."  Winry squeezed his hand.

"Nope. Never."  He assured her.  "Not as long as you're with me.  You're too good a shot with that wrench."  Another killer smile from him almost made her fall to her knees.  "C'mon! We're going to miss OUR train!"  Edward turned, still holding her hand and tugged her along the station to the next platform where the steam engine started to move.

"Not going to make it!"  Winry yelled as the whistle went off in their ears.

"Yes we will!"  Ed ran faster and grabbed the railing outside the entrance and stepped inside, dragging Winry with him.  "See?"  The two stood in the doorway as the train gained speed.  "Let's find a seat."

They passed an employee who validated the tickets Edward had for the both of them, then they found an empty seat with an open window.

"You know, all my luggage is on the other train... just have the one bag here."  Winry motioned to the rugged satchel she carried throughout their Table City adventure.

"Whatever we need, I'll buy for you... don't worry."  He was about to tell her about Tribute and his friends there when he heard obscenities coming from the station and seeming to follow the train.

"Who's that?"  Winry peered out the window and Edward joined her, she started laughing.

"Looks like the General got my research notes!"  As they both stared wide eyed, Roy Mustang ran along side the train, waiving the Xingese pornography at them.

"You little shit!"  He stopped to pant.  "Come back here and decipher this garbage!"

"Hey General Bastard!"  Ed yelled with cupped hands as the train moved father away from the irate man.  "You'll have fun figuring it out!" He snarled and continued. "And I'm not little!"

"You step one metal foot in Amestris and you're ass is going into the brig!"  Mustang finally stopped, placed his hands on his knees and tried to recover.  "You owe me this research!"

"I'll bring him back in one piece General!"  Winry screamed through her own cupped hands.  "Don't worry!"

"Hey!"  Ed questioned as they both sat down.

"Edward, the very least you can do is help him with it... besides, a side trip to Central on our way back could be fun... I mean, the Grand Central Hotel is really nice..."

"Huh?"  Ed started to imagine staying in the posh hotel... alone... with Winry.

"You're such a big goof!"  She flicked his forehead, bringing him back to reality.

"I'm you're goof..." He took her left hand and pointed to her engagement ring.

"Yeah, mine."  She smiled and shot up and took the seat next to Edward.  Winry leaned in on his shoulder and took his left hand in her right.

Edward watched the sun blaze across the dry landscape as they left Milos.  He'd promised Al that they'd meet up in a few months and figure out the meaning of Julia's gift and how to save her.  Alphonse had his studies to return to and Edward had his promise to his friends in Tribute to help them. He'd hoped Al would join them, but reassured his brother this wasn't a supernatural fight but one he and Winry most definitely could handle together and then return to Amestris.  The mechanic's soft golden hair whisked around in the wind from the open window and he thought it had grown since he first saw her in her automail shop.  Yeah, they'd have plenty of time together to grow their hair again. He chuckled.

"What's so funny?"  She asked softly.

"Nothing."  He patted her hand with his left.  She settled back down on his arm.

He wondered if now was the time to mention to her this train didn't go all the way to Tribute.  Ed wondered if Winry would be bothered by their next mode of travel... the motorcycle with passenger cab tucked safely away on another car of this train.  He realized it didn't matter, argument or not, they'd go there together. From now on, no matter what, they'd go there together.

-END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end of one journey and perhaps the start of another? Thanks to all who have following Soul Mechanics for its long trip to completion. I started out this story heavily shipping Edward and Winry and I still feel the same! As you can tell from the song quotes, I listened to a lot of Matthew Sweet during the conception and creation of the chapters - I can't help it, a lot of his stuff reminds me of anime. Soul Mechanics was inspired by the title song of this chapter, Tonight We Ride, with an idea that Winry took things into her own hands and went out to find her idiot and they'd have an adventure together. Any questions or comments? Please msg me. Reviews welcome too!


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